The Hunted
by GuardianSoulBlade
Summary: Slade was gone. The villains were defeated, and yet, Robin wanted something more challenging. He gets what he wants when Ra's Al Ghul puts a plan into effect that will change his life forever, but what does it have to do with his long dead parents?
1. Chapter I: Rebirthing

**The Hunted**

**_Summary:_** _Slade was gone. The villains were defeated, and yet, Robin wanted something more challenging. He gets what he wants when Ra's Al Ghul puts a plan into effect that will change his life forever, but what does it have to do with his long dead parents?_

**Chapter One: Rebirthing**

Ra's Al Ghul stood in his dessert stronghold, contemplating his next move. The dream of a world free of crime and restored to its former pristine glory was far from fruition. The Detective and others like him were obstacles standing between him and a perfect world. He knew he must find a way to stop the Detective, he knew that to attack him directly was a foolish decision. The Detective's Prodigy, the Boy Wonder would be an easier target, as would the butler and surrogate father, Alfred Pennyworth.

How to do that, however, would prove a challenge. There were many ways to kill a person without it appearing intentional. But Robin, he was like his mentor, clever and resourceful. His demise would have to be well thought out, well planned, and fiendishly clever. He had existed for over 600 years; he had seen many things and had many experiences. He knew there were many ways to destroy a person. He had studied the Detective and knew many things about his surrogate son.

Ra's' mind began to conceive a plan that would destroy the Detective and his Prodigy, all in one swift stroke. The plan itself disturbed him. There were many risks. The Lazarus Pit he reserved for himself alone, but in order to carry out his plan, he would have to use one as a means to an end. He hated the thought of using it on anyone else. But to destroy the Boy Wonder he would use the people he loved the most: his long dead parents.

The plan was perfect. They would reappear in his life and he would be overjoyed at their miraculous return. They would earn his trust and love and when he least expected it, they would kill him. There was still something that he thought of that he knew would jeopardize the success of his mission. Paternal instinct and love between parents and their children. He would have to convince them that their son was an enemy of true justice and had to be eliminated.

It would take time and work, but it would be worth it to see his greatest enemies destroyed. Ra's Al Ghul ordered Ubu to his private jet and they flew to an airport just outside Gotham City. They drove to Gotham City and made their way to the Gotham Cemetery. They easily located the graves and he ordered his men to dig them up.

It was the dead of night and no one was anywhere near the area. He had his men load the caskets into the back of a large freight truck and drive them back to the plane where they retreated to his dessert fortress. Ra's had his men carry the caskets into a dark, dim room. He had his men carefully remove the bodies from the coffins and place them on a concrete slab.

You will witness something that you will take to your graves, my acolytes! You will bear the responsibility of this secret for the rest of your lives!" Ra's ordered Ubu to lower the skeletons down into the Lazarus Pit, the men moved closer to get a better look at what was happening to the bodies. While they were distracted, Ra's summoned one of his other assassins.

"Lady Shiva, kill them," he ordered "No one must know about what will take place tonight besides the two of us." Without hesitation, Lady Shiva viciously attacked the other assassins, stabbing some and shooting others in the back before they could react. Within minutes, 24 bodies lay dead as the putrid smell of blood filled the air.

"Very good, Lady Shiva," Ra's said. She turned to leave. "Where are you going?"

"I do not know what I have not seen. I do not have to lie if I am asked about what you have done in this room." Shiva exited the room.

Ra's stood, eagerly awaiting the results of the Pit's effect on the Flying Graysons. Ubu said nothing. They waited for a few minutes, and then Ubu spoke.

"It has been too long, Master. They still have not emerged. It is too late for—"

There was a bubbling in the fiery liquid and a sinister smile slipped across Ra's' face. "No. They have returned. Quick, restrain them. I wish to keep both of them alive in order to destroy the Detective's surrogate son."

The unknown fiery liquid rose up in a large wave as John and Mary Grayson leapt out of the Lazarus Pit. Their maddened screams filled the room as they landed on the floor. They both stared at Ra's with wild eyes before Ubu clubbed them senseless. They were both naked; their clothes had long since rotted away. Ubu fumbled for something to cover them both but couldn't find anything for them to wear.

"Take them somewhere where they will be kept safe but secret. Then get them some clothes. If anyone sees you or questions you, kill them, Ubu," Ra's said. He turned and walked out of the room.

Ubu dragged the two bodies down the hall and placed them in two separate rooms. He found clothes that would fit both of them and placed them in each of the rooms.

Ubu made his way into another room where he found Ra's Al Ghul waiting for him. "All your instructions have been carried out, Master."

"Good, we will wait for the Graysons to come to their senses…I have lived for over six hundred years. I have become a very patient man. Convincing them to join us when they wake will not be a problem. All that is required is that we be patient…"

* * *

The one thing Mary Grayson felt first was the cold. The chill seeped through her entire body. She sat up, panicked and looked around. She didn't recognize her surroundings. She looked down at herself and realized to her horror she was naked. Her mind was a mess and her memories were a muddle. She could remember Haly Circus; the performance in Gotham City She remembered something had gone wrong. She could remember falling…falling to her death.

How had she come back? And where were her clothes? They didn't bury you naked; she knew that. She looked around and saw a pile of clothes lying on the floor. Without any thought, she put them on. She walked to the door and hesitantly opened it. She slipped quietly into the hallway.

"Hello, Mrs. Grayson," Ra's said. Mary jumped out of her skin and whirled around to face him.

"Calm yourself. I mean you no harm," Ra's said soothingly, "I want to help you."

"Where am I?" she demanded. "Who are you? Where's John?"

"Where you are does not matter, but I am he who is called Ra's Al Ghul. I am the leader of a global organization dedicated to ridding the world of evil, Mrs. Grayson. And as to the whereabouts of your husband John Grayson he sits in the next room. If you'll follow me."

He led her into large, spacious room where she saw her husband, John Grayson waiting for her, clothed in the same attire she was wearing. Without hesitation, she ran into his arms, and they embraced. Zealous kisses were exchanged with whispers of, "I love you" and "What's going on?" between both husband and wife. They both forced themselves to relax and pulled away. They were both very confused and hoped to gain some answers from the mysterious Ra's Al Ghul.

Regaining their composures, they turned their attention to Ra's Al Ghul.

"How…how did this happen to us?" John asked. He folded his arms and waited for answers. Ra's Al Ghul was impressed. The man was very blunt and straight to the point. He was like his son. Ra's remembered Robin's appearance from the time he had kidnapped the Boy Wonder in order to test the Detective's skills to see if he was a worthy suitor for his daughter Talia.

Staring at the Flying Graysons, he half expected that Robin would have had a stronger resemblance to his birth father. But that was not so, he had his father's dark hair and some of his personality traits, but Robin's physical appearance came from his mother. She was shorter, had a smaller build and he noted that Robin had his mother's chin and eyes. He snapped out of his reverie and answered their questions. He had always been very skilled in the art of deception. They did not know that he knew who and where their son was. He also knew plenty of things about them through his research on the Detective and his adopted son.

"The miracle of the Lazarus Pit. It can restore life to the dead," Ra's explained. "I wished to bring you back to life because I heard of your tragic demise and I wish for your killer to be punished."

"What happened to the man who killed us?" John asked.

"Tony Zucco still lives. And he has not yet been found. He disappeared seven years ago shortly after you were murdered. Not even the Batman could find him. I have the knowledge and the skills to bring him to justice. And I wish to help you avenge you and your wife."

"I don't want revenge, I want justice," John said, anger seeping into his voice. "Tony Zucco should pay for what he did to us."

"And I will help you get justice. True justice. I'm offering you a path. Whether or not you take it is up to you. But I should warn you that if you refuse my offer, such opportunities do not present themselves on their own. You have the chance to make yourself more than just a man. And when you make yourself more than just a man, you become something else entirely…a legend."

"What makes you think we need a path?" John asked. "What makes you think we need your guidance?"

"Men take paths because they are searching for something. You want to find something, don't you? You wife has mentioned it before."

"Yes," Mary answered. "I want to find my son. If we take this path, will it help us find him?"

"Only you can decide where your path takes you," Ra's said simply.

"May I speak to my wife in private?" John asked. "We've always made decisions together as a family."

"Of course," Ra's said politely. He turned around and walked out of the room. John and Mary sat beside each other; both were contemplating their next actions. What should they do? Should they take Ra's' advice and follow the path he had shown them? Or should they leave and search for answers on their own?

"What should we do John?" Mary asked.

"I'm not sure, Mary. What Ra's said makes sense…I want to punish Zucco for what he did to us," John said angrily. "We didn't deserve to die like we did!"

"I know…but how are we supposed to find Dick?" Mary asked. "All I care about is my son."

"He said he'd teach us what we would need to find him. When this is all over we'll find Dick and explain everything to him," John said, trying to reassure his wife.

"How long will this take John? Weeks? Months? Years?" Mary asked. She pulled her husband into a hug. "I miss him."

"I know. I miss him too," John whispered, kissing her forehead. He wrapped his arms around her waist and she laid her head on his shoulder as she rested a hand on his chest.

John stood up and Mary joined him as they walked with one arm around the other's waist, toward the door. They knocked and the door opened with Ra's Al Ghul standing in front of them.

"Have you both reached a decision, then?" he asked the former Flying Graysons.

"Yes, we have," John said. "We're staying. We want you to teach us everything you know."


	2. Chapter II: Learning to Breathe

**Some Romani words for you:**

_Odjus_: Beautiful.

_Bauri Lólodúianchír_: Small Robin,_ Little Robin_

_Me kom tu_: I love you (rough translation)

**Chapter II: Learning to Breathe**

Mary Grayson stood on a wooden platform; her feet planted on small pedestals, forcing herself to remain balanced. Ninjas held long poles and metal rods. Each took turns striking at her and it was her objective to avoid the blows.

"Gungh!" Mary grunted as she felt stabbing pain in her side. Pain had become a regular part of her body now; it never went away, it was always there, constantly reminding her she had bruised something in training sessions with Ra's Al Ghul.

Mary blocked a blow and felt more pain surge through her shoulder as a spike lodged itself into her shoulder. "Gah!" she screamed as she lost her footing and nearly fell off the platforms. She managed to catch herself as she fell forward and pull herself to her feet.

Raising her hands in a defensive position, she prepared for another attack. One of the ninjas struck her again with the pole; she blocked the blow with one hand and saw another strike aimed at her side. She deftly avoided it and ducked as another man aimed for her head.

"Enough!" Ra's Al Ghul shouted. "You may rest, Mary. Three hours is long enough."

Mary stepped off the training platforms and onto the floor; she quietly walked over to a chair and sat down.

"You are doing well," Ra's complemented her as she wiped sweat off her forehead with the sleeve of her black Shinobi shozoku tunic.

"Really?" Mary asked.

"Indeed, you and your husband have learned much since you both chose this path. You are moving one step closer to retribution, one step closer to bringing your murderer to justice."

Mary didn't say anything as she watched John get up on the platforms and begin the same exercise she had just finished. Her muscles felt sore and her whole body ached. It had taken her some time to readjust to living in the world again, it was like learning to breathe, she actually had to remember she wasn't dead anymore. Adapting to the world around her had been hard. Heaven was a wonderful place. But she was doing well; at least, John said so. Still it was hard for her to comprehend that she'd been dead for almost a decade. The new technology confused her and so much had happened since she died that it was hard to comprehend everything. She tried to put it all out of her mind by focusing her attention on what Ra's was saying to her.

"Will I always feel like I've been hit by a freight train?" Mary asked.

"You will improve. You already have," Ra's told her.

May thought it would be wiser to keep quiet. She turned her attention back to John who was busy warding off blow after blow, easily dodging and avoiding attack after attack. This went on for three more hours and Mary felt a twinge of jealousy that her husband had the stamina to keep going while she nearly collapsed from exhaustion.

"You may rest, John," Ra's said.

Mary made her way over to where her husband sat on a chair. She pulled him into her arms. "Are you all right?" she asked.

"I'm fine," John said, reassuring her. "You're the one who looks exhausted."

"So nice of you to notice," Mary said, lightly kissing his forehead.

"Let's go outside, fresh air will do us both some good," John suggested.

Mary and John began walking outside Ra's Al Ghul's temple in the Himalayas. They had been surprised that Ra's Al Ghul was nomadic. He and his men never stayed in the same place for too long. They were very much like the Flying Graysons, except that John and Mary were circus performers and they traveled with Haly Circus.

"You bandage that cut, honey?" John asked, looking at the holes in her shoulder from their training exercise.

"Yes, it's fine. Why are we walking out here in the cold anyway?" Mary asked.

"I thought it was time we get some sword practice in. We've been learning so much that it's hard to remember everything."

"But why now, especially when I'm exhausted?" Mary took his hand in hers.

"We need some time to ourselves. We don't get that much anymore. Not since we started training."

John stepped out onto ice and Mary followed, both began circling each other cautiously, drawing their wakizashi swords, which are similar to the longer bladed katana, but were slightly shorter.

A few blows were exchanged; John kept a wary eye on his wife, waiting for her to make the next move.

The blades clashed as they both attacked each other with fury. Mary swept the sword toward John horizontally as her husband easily ducked to avoid it.

"You'll have to do better than that, Mary," John said quietly.

Mary twirled the sword and sliced diagonally downwards, blades clashed loudly as they moved across the ice.

John quickly executed a kick, one that Mary avoided by somersaulting backwards. She landed hard, causing the ice to crack beneath her feet. She scrambled away from the spot, hoping the ice would hold.

John slammed his blade down on hers as she tried to rise to her feet, she stumbled and fell again. The sword slashed into the ice and she rolled away. Rising to her feet, she brought the blade swinging up in a graceful arc, John's sword met hers but she slammed her elbow into the side of his face, causing him to fall back.

John suddenly sent his knees sweeping out in front of him, causing her to fall, but she caught herself with her hand, flipping backwards, she landed on her feet, quickly knocking John's sword away.

She held the blade next to his throat and said, "Yield."

"You didn't win, Mary, you're standing on thin ice," John said through ragged breaths. The ice cracked and she fell in. Mary caught herself with her hands as John quickly sprang to his feet and helped her out of the lake.

Mary was already shivering from the cold as she climbed out of the lake.

"C'mon, let's get you somewhere warm," John wrapped his arms around her. They quickly made their way back inside the temple.

* * *

"Feeling any better, Mary?" John asked, walking into her sleeping quarters. She had managed to change her clothes without being noticed and no one knew or cared where they had been.

"A little, I'm just happy I'm not sick." Mary began staring at the wall, a distant expression on her face.

"John, have you forgotten what today is?" Mary asked quietly, a forlorn look on her face.

"Of course not," John said with a smile, "it's our wedding anniversary."

"I know, it's just…it would have been our 20th anniversary if we hadn't died. And I can't help but thinking—"

"About Dick, I know. Our _Bauri Lólodúianchír_. You've thought about him for months."

"What did you call him, John?"

"Little Robin, you gave him that name, I just said it in Romani, that's all."

"How come you've never taught me Romani, John?" Mary asked. Her husband often spoke it, but he had never taken the time to properly teach her, he taught Dick some words but he wasn't fluent either.

"Me kom tu," John muttered, kissing her lips sweetly.

"Hmmm…?" Mary asked.

"I said, "I love you,"" John laughed. "I really should teach you Romani. It might come in handy." He noted she still had a far off look on her face. "Still thinking about Dick."

"I can't help it, John. I miss him."

"I understand that. But when was the last time you actually thought about what _you_ want?"

John pulled his wife into a searing kiss, gently slipping his tongue passed her lips and into her mouth. Mary felt wonderfully dizzy. It had been a very long time since he had kissed her like this. She returned it with equal fervor. She pulled away, quietly turning away from him.

"I haven't thought about what I want in a long, long time," Mary sighed.

"Tell me, Mary," John whispered in a demanding voice, "what do you want?" he proceeded to place a kiss between her neck and shoulder blade; he smiled against her skin as she trembled in his arms. Mary leaned back into his embrace.

"Do I have to tell you, John?" Mary asked quietly.

"No, because I already know," John murmured softly. He quietly turned Mary around to face him as he trailed kisses back to her mouth and greedily pulled her to him. John was not a selfish person, but for his wife he allowed himself the self-indulgence of knowing that she would always be his. He loved her more than anyone, and was very possessive of her in that way.

His lips caressed hers and he felt her breath hitch for a moment as he soul kissed her; he lowered her onto the cot that was his bed in his sleeping quarters. Ra's Al Ghul had kept them in separate rooms and they both disliked that so they would periodically sneak into the other's room to see how they were doing, and tonight was no exception.

"I'm going to make you feel like it's our wedding night all over again," John leaned in close and crooned in her ear.

"John," Mary let out a groan.

"I think you like that idea, don't you?" he sealed her lips with his, silencing her answer. They spent the rest of that night rekindling their old flame. Mary's mind spun as a moan escaped her, if there could be Heaven on Earth; she had found it with John Grayson. For a moment, her mind began to wander over to the other man in her life. Mary's thoughts began to dwell on her son, and she began to wonder what kind of man he had become in a world without her.

* * *

_Six Months earlier... _

Meanwhile, far, far away in Jump City, Dick Grayson, more commonly known as Robin, the leader of the Teen Titans stood on the roof of Titans Tower, staring out at the vast Ocean.

He had been busy during the last few weeks, battling criminals, saving the city. It was all starting to become routine and predictable. He needed something harder, a more difficult challenge.

Robin walked into the living room. He began flipping through the channels on the television, trying to find something to watch.

He found a news station and began watching it, trying to see what was going on around the country.

"In a strange series of events, the bodies of the "Fearless Flying Graysons" mysteriously disappeared after their headstones were desecrated in the Gotham Cemetery yesterday," the newscaster said.

"_WHAT?"_ He half-shouted. How did he not know about this?

"Local authorities informed Bruce Wayne and tried to contact Dick Grayson who could not be reached for comment for unknown reasons. The police and the Batman are heading their own separate investigations into the incident."

Robin got to his feet and headed for his room. He began packing his things. Starfire walked into his room and looked surprised to see him packing things into a bag.

"Robin, you are leaving us?" Starfire asked. "What is going on?"

"I have some unexpected business in Gotham City," Robin said. "I won't be gone long, I promise. Something…something has come up that urgently needs my attention."

"Does this…involve your mentor?" Starfire asked.

"No, no. It's something else. Something very personal, I'll tell you about it when I get home."

Starfire stared at him. What could be so important that he would leave them without telling them what it was?

"Please Robin, tell me why you must go to the Gotham City, I want to help you—"

"Starfire, I—I can't tell you much but I can only say that it's—it's a matter of family, that's all. There is something I have to take care of. I'll explain it all when I get back."

Robin carried the suitcase out into the living room. Cyborg, Beast Boy and Raven walked in.

"Going somewhere Robin?" Cyborg asked.

"What's going on? Are we taking a road trip?" Beast Boy asked. "You've got your bags packed and everything."

"I have to go to Gotham City on…personal business. I won't be gone long."

"Robin, are you sure you don't need us to go with you?" Raven asked.

"Yes, I won't need you guys on this one. This is a…very personal matter. I have to go."

Robin arrived in Gotham City and headed straight for the Gotham Cemetery. He made his way to his parents' graves. They were blocked off by yellow crime scene tape with the words: _Crime Scene: Do Not Cross_ written on them.

"Hello, Robin," Detective Ellen Yin said, "I'm surprised you're here. I was half expecting the Batman. He has already investigated what happened."

"Well, it never hurts to have a second pair of eyes," Robin said. Robin began peering around the hole where his parents' bodies had once been laid to rest. He was infuriated when he saw how carelessly their headstone had been tossed aside. He could still make out the inscription: J_ohn and Mary Grayson. Parents. Performers. Who still soar in our sky._

The tombstones lay on the ground. Robin noted the headstone had been split in two.

Robin spotted something gleaming in the moonlight. He bent down and picked up the small object, cleaning off the dirt as best as he could. It was a ring. Robin could faintly make out the inscription: _Forever yours, Mary Grayson._

It was his mother's wedding ring. He quickly put it into his utility belt.

"Find anything Robin?" Detective Yin asked.

"Yes," Robin replied, bending down, he spotted a small circular object embedded in the ground. He picked it up and showed it to the detective.

"Recognize it?" he asked.

"It's a shuriken of some kind, but I couldn't tell you who it belonged to," Detective Yin said. "That area wasn't covered in basic training."

"I know who it belongs to. The League of Assassins, they're the ones behind this," Robin said.

"A terrorist organization? What would they want with the Flying Graysons?" Ellen Yin asked. "I never worked on the case but it was very sad what happened to them."

"That's what I want to know," Robin said under his breath. _Why would Ra's Al Ghul steal my parents' bodies? And if he _did_ take them, where are they now?_

* * *

_Back in the Present…_

Over the months, Mary's endurance improved and her body no longer felt the old weariness she had experienced during her first months of training. Now she stood in the center of the room sparring with her husband.

Blades clashed once again, Mary slammed her knee up into John's gut. He grunted and bent over as she executed a high kick that went over his head as he ducked. Mary suddenly locked her gauntlet against the sword blade, forcing John to remain motionless.

John tried unsuccessfully to pull the blade away. Mary pushed him back further; John suddenly executed a palm strike, slamming his open palm into Mary's face. She staggered back and he quickly countered her attack with a butterfly kick.

She managed to avoid the blow and fiercely punched him in the face. He dodged the blow and struck again with the sword. Blades clashed again and again as one tried to best the other.

John slashed straight forward and Mary parried it as she whirled around, switching hands as she turned. She now held the sword in her left and stabbed sideways. John was caught off guard and felt the blade pierce the skin on his hand. He barely managed to move away so he wouldn't sever his fingers or have his hand accidentally cut off.

"Ah! Watch it, Mary!" John growled, "I want to keep my hand, _nais tuke!_" Nais Tuke was the Romani equivalent of _thank you._

"Sorry, John, but I intend to win this round," Mary grunted out. Moving forward to attack.

"You're not going to win," John replied. A mischievous smile crossed his face. He locked her sword in place with his gauntlets, he moved very close to her.

"Because of this," John pulled her close and kissed her, gently easing her arms down so they remained at her sides. He nimbly removed the wakizashi from her hand, placing it back in its scabbard.

John pulled away from her, still smiling. "I told you so."

"John, you cheated," Mary smirked.

"I can't help it when you're so _odjus_, Mary._"_ he kissed her again.

John and Mary Grayson stood patiently waiting for Ra's Al Ghul to arrive. They had grown used to the daily grind of constant combat practice and lesions in weapons use, deception, cunning and stealth.

"Where's Ra's?" Mary asked, more to herself than to John.

"I don't know. I guess we'll have to wait and see," John said, standing a few feet from his wife. They both looked up as they heard the door open with a loud _creak._

A man walked in through the fortress door and the mere sight of him sent a shiver down Mary Grayson's spine. He was tall and well built. He was very muscular like her husband, John. He was clothed in black and wore Kevlar body armor. He was clad in steel-toed boots and had a utility belt strapped around his waist. But there was something she didn't like about him. She noted the man had white hair and a small goatee. Mary let her gaze meet his eyes, to find to her surprise that he was missing an eye and wore a patch to cover it up.

She stared into the man's piercing blue eye, and saw that there was…emptiness, an emotionless void, and it made her blood run cold. When she felt his gaze fall on her, she felt like he was violating her mentally and psychologically. She could feel his eye roaming her figure, as if he were leering at her, she tried to ignore the unsettling feeling in the pit of her stomach and as casually as she could made her way over to John and put her arm around his waist, silently pleading with him to stay near her.

John seemed to understand and gently squeezed her hand, giving her the reassurance she needed. They both stared intently at their new Sensei.

"Hello, John. Mary. My name is Slade Wilson. Ra's has other things he must attend to so I will be training you both from now on."


	3. Chapter III: Ambience

**Chapter III: Ambience**

It had been two weeks after Slade had arrived. In those two weeks they had learned more martial arts and fighting techniques. John found that Slade was a hard teacher who required perfection. There were no mistakes with him, and mistakes were punished with a severe beating in endless rounds of sparring.

It was during such a round that John Grayson ducked and avoided a deadly blow as Slade swung at him. "If you want to defeat your opponent, you have to be ruthless, viscous. It is the only way you will slaughter your enemy."

"I'm not a killer, Slade," John said. "That's not who I am."

"If you want to be the best there is, you have to be willing to do whatever it takes," Slade said strongly. The father was like the son, Slade noted. He would not kill. It was a weakness.

Slade did not tolerate weakness. Robin's weakness was his friends. He grew curious about Robin's parents. He knew that John loved his wife Mary very much. That was his weakness. He wondered what Mary's weakness was.

Slade suddenly kicked John, sending him flying across the room. John flipped back and landed on his feet. Slade slammed an elbow into his face and John slammed his knee into Slade's stomach.

John struck at Slade when suddenly Slade grasped his wrist and twisted his arm around his back. He slammed John onto the ground.

"I have much to teach you, John. This session is over, you may leave," Slade said flatly. He released his grip on John's arm.

John rose to his feet, turned, and left. Mary began to follow him. Slade stepped forward. Now was his chance to get Mary alone with him. He did not deny the fact that he found her attractive, but, putting that aside, he knew she was Robin's mother. Ra's had contacted him and although he did not give him the details of his plan, he knew that it involved Robin's mother.

Mary Grayson felt thoughts of her son come to her and she stared off at the wall. Realizing she was standing there staring at nothing, she turned to leave and suddenly felt her body stiffen as Slade in an almost gentle way, placed a hand on her shoulder.

"Is something wrong?" he asked.

"No, I'm just…thinking about my boy, again. I've been thinking about him a lot these days."

"You didn't tell me you had a son, what is his name?" Slade asked. Slade knew full well Robin's secret identity, he was curious as to whether or not his mother would trust him enough to tell him that. He slipped his other hand onto her other shoulder.

"His name is…" Mary was about to answer Slade's question when suddenly, the familiar feeling of discomfort and dread came over her. She didn't know why, but her instincts told her that this was none of Slade's business, and the distrust she had felt earlier returned, Mary felt that if she told him she would be putting Dick in danger, but she didn't know why. "I don't see how my personal life is your business."

So, her son was her weakness. _Robin_ was her weakness. Slade smiled inwardly. Now all he had to do was exploit her Achilles' heel, and he would have everything he needed to break Robin's will once and for all.

"What's the matter, Mary, don't you trust me?" Slade asked as he gently pulled her back against him.

"Get your hands off me!" Mary said angrily, yanking herself out of his grasp. "You are not my husband."

"A pity. The one you have treats you like a possession, not a person," Slade said. No doubt luring her away would be easy. Women were easy to manipulate, at least, they were easy for him to manipulate.

"You can't seduce me, Sensei. It goes against everything you and I stand for," Mary said, anger in her voice. Why was this happening to her, _her_ of all people? Never in her wildest dreams would she leave John for another man. Why was Slade doing this?

"You have no idea what I stand for, Mary Grayson, and to be quite frank, you don't have any choice in this matter."

Slade grabbed a hold of her arms faster than Mary could react. He pulled her against him with inhuman strength as he tried to pin her against the wall.

"Let go!" she screamed, "Leave me alone!"

Mary managed to execute a kick that sent Slade staggering back.

She tried to punch him but he grabbed her arm and threw her across the room. She landed on her feet and attacked him with fury. Her blows did little damage however, since he kept blocking them with ease.

Slade grabbed her wrists and bent both back painfully.

"Aaaah!" Mary screamed. She brought her foot slamming up into Slade's groin as hard as she could.

"Gah!" he howled at the unexpected maneuver. He staggered back, growling in rage. He slammed his foot into her stomach, knocking the wind out of her. A malicious blow to the face and she fell to the ground. He began moving so he could get on top of her, and she tried to hold him off by grabbing his hands and pushing him back.

"Keep your filthy hands away from me!" Mary screamed in rage and fear.

John was walking down the hallway when he suddenly realized that Mary wasn't with him. He turned around and headed back for the training room. He was halfway back to the training room when he heard Mary scream, "Let go! Leave me alone!"

He sprinted back and threw the door open to see Slade pinning his wife on the ground. He was going to rape her! Seething with rage, he leaped straight at Slade.

Slade stepped aside, avoiding the blow but that only enraged John Grayson. He slammed an open palm into the side of Slade's face. He quickly performed a reverse turn kick, sweeping one knee out at Slade's feet and bringing the other foot up and slamming it into Slade's face. Spinning, he smashed his foot into Slade's left eye socket, he stumbled back.

John repeatedly rained down blows on Slade, connecting with the man's body wherever he could. His head, midsection; stomach, anywhere he was vulnerable. Slade crashed to his knees.

John Grayson glared at him. "Stay away from my wife!"

Just then, Ra's Al Ghul walked in the room.

"What is going on here?" Ra's demanded angrily.

Slade looked at him. "Only a minor problem, it is nothing."

"Don't lie to me; I know what you tried to do to her. I watched it all on the cameras. I will not tolerate such actions. You have disgraced yourself. I requested you train them, not to seduce another man's wife! For this, I am sending you away!"

Slade didn't say a word. He just stared at John, his face twisted in a malicious glare. John felt fury towards his Sensei. He thought Slade was trying to help him, but now he knew that he only wanted to get to his wife.

The very thought of Slade touching Mary made his blood boil. He wanted to lunge at Slade and beat him with every fiber of his being, but knew that would not be a very honorable decision. But that didn't mean that he was going go easy on him the next time he saw Slade. He was going to make him pay for what he tried to do to his wife.

"Mary, John, you both may leave; I will deal with this matter myself." Mary and John nodded and headed out of the room.

John moved very close to Slade as he walked by him. "If you _ever_ touch my wife again, you'll be sorry!"

He turned around and headed out the door and didn't catch the smirk on Slade's face as he left the room.

Ra's stared at the door as it slammed shut and waited until their footsteps had receded out of earshot. Slade looked at the leader of the League of Assassins.

"I must say, Ra's," Slade commented. "Even _I_ would have never thought to seduce Robin's birth mother. I must admit, upon seeing her up close, it crossed my mind, she _is_ very beautiful."

"That's why I requested you…play the role, as it were. I do believe she thinks all that was your idea. Your performance has been adequate. This incident will only strengthen their loyalty to me. Besides, I have no doubt you will use this to your advantage."

"I will make good use of it. But now I'll ask you for my payment. After all, I can't stay. She believes you are sending me away. And her husband, Robin's real "Father" is as ignorant as he is stupid. Hard to believe he spawned that boy."

"Do not underestimate John Grayson. He is hardly stupid. He has used his newfound skills to protect his precious wife from your…unwanted attention."

"Ha. The only reason he "defeated" me is because I let him," Slade sneered. "He is nothing. Robin's mentor, "The Detective" as you call him is far more intelligent than this John Grayson."

"You assume too much, the father whom you called "ignorant and stupid" single handedly fought off the thugs who eventually killed him and his wife. And that was long _before_ I trained either of them."

"I see. I will keep that in mind. Now about my payment," Slade said, holding out his hand. Ra's slapped a check into his hand.

"It is nearly impossible to trace where this came from. When you return home, I will pay you very well if you…keep the Boy Wonder distracted so he will not have time to search for his parents' bodies. I have heard that he has discovered that their graves have been…desecrated. I have heard that he wishes to search for them but I have paid the local criminals in his city to keep him busy. He has not had the time to leave yet."

"I see. I will take my leave, goodbye, Ra's," Slade turned and walked out of the temple.

"So far everything is going just as I have planned,' Ra's said in a pleased voice to himself. "Soon the Detective's Prodigy will die and with it, all the Graysons hopes and dreams, and they will never know what became of their son until it's too late."

Ra's turned and walked out of the room, his plan was working, and the Graysons were putty in his hands. Taking down Robin would prove effortless. The very thought of it made him laugh, and that's exactly what he did.

* * *

_Six Months Ago..._

It was late that evening when Robin walked through the familiar doors of Titans Tower. Starfire flew over to greet him.

"Robin!" Starfire smiled as she hugged him. "Did you take care of the business in the Gotham City?"

"To an extent," Robin said. "I'm not staying long. I have to pack my things."

"You are leaving us again?" Starfire asked. "Why? You said that you would explain the matter of your family when you returned. You are here. What was the matter of family that caused you to leave us?"

"Yeah, man, you owe us an explanation of why you just up and ran off on us without saying why," Cyborg said from his place on their circular couch.

Beast Boy looked at him too. "C'mon, Dude. Spill."

"The reason I when back to Gotham City is because my parents' graves were…desecrated."

Starfire gasped in shock. "Robin, your parents are dead? I thought your mentor was your—"

"No Starfire, he is not my father. My birth father died when I was about 12 years old."

"Robin, I know this question is personal…but did your parents fall to their deaths… from a trapeze wire?" Raven asked hesitantly.

Starfire was astonished at Robin's reaction as he stiffened angrily. "How did you know that, Raven?" he demanded. The tone of his voice startled her.

"When I went inside your mind when you hallucinated about seeing Slade, I saw your memories. And one of them was a man and a woman falling to their deaths from a trapeze high wire. Were they your parents?"

"Yes, and that is all you need to know. I'll be leaving soon. I have to find their bodies."

"Robin, but what about—" Starfire began.

"I don't want to talk about this now!" Robin said sternly. "Maybe some other time, but not now! I'm sorry Star; I'm just not ready to talk about my parents." Robin turned and left the room. Starfire stared after him wondering if she had done something wrong.

"Don't worry, Star," Cyborg said. "He's just not ready to talk about it. You didn't do anything wrong."

"But why has he not told us about his birth parents?" she asked the robotic Titan.

"Robin's really private. He doesn't have to tell us about his parents if he doesn't want to. Just give him time."

Starfire stared at the doorway, hoping he was right.

Robin went into his room and lay down on his bed, closed his eyes, and for the first time in a long, long time, he dreamed. Unbeknownst to him, his mother Mary had decided to take a nap to rest her exhausted body.

_Robin opened his eyes and looked around as he took in a very familiar sight. He was standing outside of the large big top of Haly Circus. Familiar smells assaulted his senses, popcorn, cotton candy, elephants and the scent of horses filled his mind as he took in the sights and sounds of the place he had once called home. _

_Dick Grayson, Robin had grown up in Haly Circus as a part of the legendary aerialist group The Flying Graysons. His parents had died when Boss Tony Zucco had removed the bolts that secured the line that held up the trapeze wires, when the unscrewed bolts flew off the screws it had sent his parents plummeting to their deaths during their performance in Gotham City. _

_Bruce Wayne had adopted him and he had discovered a short time later that Bruce was the Batman. That same night Bruce had tracked down Zucco to an abandoned Haly Circus where he had saved Batman from having a knife embedded in his head by the mob boss. _

_Dick had arrived dressed in his circus uniform, wearing a mask and a cape that he had found in the Batcave. Why had there been a yellow and black and shaped perfectly to his height? It seemed coincidental; perhaps Bruce had known he had found a potential partner in him when he adopted him, maybe that was why those things were in the Batcave. _

_Bruce had seen him as more than just a little kid who lost his parents, he had seen someone who could follow in his footsteps, not as an apprentice, obligated by servitude, but as a partner and a son. _

_But despite all the changes in his life, he wished that his parents had lived to see him and his life and what he was now. He knew that was wishful thinking, if his parents were alive there would be no Robin, no Teen Titans, his life would be like had been when he was growing up, he would be touring with Haly Circus and the Flying Graysons would be entertaining audiences around the world. _

_Robin stepped forward, grabbing the thick curtain of the big top entrance and stepping through it into the large open space of the dirt arena. _

_Robin looked up, standing in front of him was someone he loved very much, and it wasn't Starfire. His mother stood before him, smiling intently as she scrutinized her son's appearance. Robin looked down, and to his own surprise, found that he was in his uniform in his dream, he thought even though it was a dream that he would be in civilian clothing, he thought that this was a dream of his childhood, but it wasn't. _

_"Mom?" he asked, "Is that you?" _

_"What kind of a question is that?" Mary asked him, still smiling. "Have I really been dead so long that you don't recognize me anymore?" There was a hint of sadness in her voice. _

_"I'm sorry, Mom," Robin quickly apologized. "But this is a dream, isn't it?" _

_"Yes, I suppose it is," Mary said quietly, "But that doesn't mean it's not real." _

_"I carry you always, in my memories, I could never forget you," Robin said, moving forward. Dream or no, he wanted to hug her. Her arms had always been a source of strength for him, she had held him when he had nightmares as a little boy, and when he was ever sad or afraid, she had always been there, until Zucco stole her life away. But even in death, she remained a source of strength for him, her words guided his decisions, and her love guided his actions, it was because of her that he became Robin. _

_His Father was also a strong part of who he was, his father's moral guidance was the foundation of his ethics and he had his father's sensibility about him, and John Grayson's good-heartedness and strong willed nature. _

_Warm arms enveloped him as Robin pulled his mother into a hug. Robin could smell his mother's scent, fresh flowers mixed with shampoo. He remembered how nice she smelled, and how beautiful she was. _

_"It's okay, Dick," Mary's voice told him sweetly. "I'm here." _

_"Mom, what did you mean when you said "But that doesn't mean it's not real." I know this is a dream." _

_"I'll leave that up to your interpretation," Mary said, pulling away from him to study his appearance. "I am surprised you're still wearing that costume. You told me it was too bright and colorful." _

_"I wear it to remember you, and dad too. You made me what I am." _

_"I see. Why do you wear this?" she asked, gently reaching for the mask that covered his eyes. He began to reach out to stop her, but remembered that he was dreaming and that she wouldn't really take his mask off. _

_"I have to wear it. It's part of who I am now," he whispered. Mary removed the mask, it fell to the dirt silently; and then she knelt down and stared into his green eyes that were so much like her own. _

_She leaned forward and kissed his forehead. "You look so handsome," she said as she hugged him. _

_Robin smiled. "Everyone says I look like you." _

_"I know," Mary smiled. "I love you." _

_"I love you, Mom," Robin whispered. "I just wish I didn't have to wake up. I wish I could stay here with you." _

_"Don't say that, son," Mary said sternly, Robin was startled. His Mother was rarely stern with him when she was alive, so why did she act that way in his dream? _

_"Dreams can't last forever, but maybe, somehow, you'll wake up and find that the dream is real." _

_"Mom, I don't understand. What are you talking about—" _

_"Wake up, Dick," Mary said in a strong voice. "Wake up!" _

Robin opened his eyes and wiped sleep away. He wished he wouldn't have to wake up and that he could stay with his Mother in his dreams. He sat up, and looked down, to his surprise, his mask lay on his bed. He hadn't taken it off, so how had it ended up down there?

Robin stared out his window and wondered if it was just a dream, or if what his Mother said to him was more than merely that.

_

* * *

_

_Back in the present… _

John and Mary held each other desperately as she cried on his shoulder. "I'm here, Mary. I won't let him hurt you. I promise."

Mary couldn't speak; she was too traumatized by the whole ordeal. She wanted to feel safe in John's arms but safety felt very far away.

There was a knock at the door, John stiffened. "Who is it?" he demanded.

"Ra's Al Ghul," Ra's said.

"Come in," John said. He opened the door for Ra's.

"How is your wife?" Ra's asked, a note of concern in his voice.

"I'm…trying to recover from this," Mary said hesitantly. She pulled away from John.

"That is good. I am glad to hear it," Ra's said. "Through your actions you have proven that you are ready."

"Ready?" John asked. "Ready for what?"

"To take the path you were meant to take, as one of us," Ra's said. "You and your wife are ready to join the League of Assassins."

"What is it that you need us to do?" John asked, crossing his arms, a determined look on his face.

Ra's couldn't help but smile a little; the Flying Graysons were ready and willing to destroy their son.


	4. Chapter IV: Dead By Dawn

**Chapter IV: Dead By Dawn**

"There is a young man who stands in our way. He opposes True Justice, holding the ideology of his views of right and wrong regarding our beliefs…you and your wife must put an end to his resistance. Permanently."

Ra's pushed a button, revealing a life size hologram of Robin, the Boy Wonder. Mary struggled not to show any emotion. Now she knew the truth about why Ra's had resurrected them. This wasn't about Tony Zucco at all, this was about Dick; after all the things Ra's had said about justice, she felt betrayed. This wasn't justice, this was murder, and she refused to become what had killed her.

"You can't…believe in this…" John whispered. Mary had told him about the recurring dream she kept having about Dick. He knew she had seen him in Haly Circus dressed in a uniform similar to the one she had made for him when they were alive. The only difference was that he wore a short yellow and black cape and a mask covering his eyes. They both hadn't understood the significance of the cape and mask until Ra's had shown them a picture of a young man calling himself _Robin the Boy Wonder. _

Ra's didn't know that the title of Boy Wonder was no surprise to John and Mary Grayson. Other members of Haly Circus had given Dick the nickname because he had learned acrobatics at such an early age.

Mary had been trying unsuccessfully to locate Dick using the Internet but had failed to find anything. Now she knew why, they were trying to hide Dick's whereabouts. Ra's had said her son was some kind of vigilante. Staring at the picture, she thought he kind of looked like the Batman. She had heard whispers among the ranks about "The Detective" and she knew that one of the Batman's many titles was "The World's Greatest Detective." Mary had heard that "The Detective" had a "Prodigy" and that he was the last of his family. All that seemed coincidental but now that she had seen the hologram it confirmed her suspicion that her son was alive. Part of her had come to believe he was dead because she could find nothing about him anywhere. It was as if he had vanished or died.

"This isn't what I asked for when I requested you train me and my wife. I would never—"

"—Become a killer?" Ra's asked. "But you must do this, for if you do not you will never be able to give Tony Zucco the justice he deserves."

"What—what do you mean?" John asked.

"This young man you must eliminate is a vigilante. He takes the law into his own hands and he is a threat to us."

"Your threats are not our priority. We only want to find our son," John said. "We are very grateful to you, but we have never believed it is right to murder someone. Even after all we've been through. And we will find Tony Zucco on our own."

"Then you lack the courage to do all that is necessary to defeat evil. A lack of courage is not tolerated. Cowardice does not become either of you."

"We aren't cowards, we will do what is necessary to defeat evil. Just not what _you_ think is necessary, Ra's," John said. He knew the moment Ra's started talking about killing that he knew he had made a terrible decision in staying here.

Now he felt guilty that he had ever agreed to let Ra's train them. But what was he supposed to do in that situation? Things like this had never happened to him before. He blamed himself for being foolish, leaving Mary alone with Slade. He had unknowingly put her in danger. She had almost been raped because he had carelessly left her alone with someone who was dangerous. He had trusted the man because he was his teacher. He knew that he could not trust strangers as he once did all those years ago. Things had changed since then, the world had gotten worse.

Now the betrayal had revealed itself in a sick and twisted way. Ra's was ordering him to destroy his own son, his legacy. That was one thing he could not and _would not_ do. Whatever Ra's was going to say next was a lie. John knew that Ra's knew about his son or he wouldn't have been so adamant about destroying him. Ra's had nearly deceived them into doing his bidding until he showed them the hologram. If parents couldn't recognize their child in a costume, mask or not, they were either blind or stupid. The Graysons were neither.

Mary spoke quietly, "I could never kill anyone…especially not my own son…"

"That boy is not your son," Ra's said in an emotionless voice. "He is our enemy. Our enemies are _your_ enemies. You must kill him, he will never let you give Tony Zucco the justice he deserves."

"Now I _know_ you've been lying to us," John said. "You might have been able to cover up what happened to our son but you failed to cover up what happened to Tony Zucco."

"He is still alive and has managed to elude capture by the Batman," Ra's said.

"No, Batman caught him shortly after we died. It was all over the Gotham newspapers. You and your vast network overlooked that part. I know he's on Death Row right now. You were just saying all that so we would stay, so you could train us to kill our son, and by the time we learned the truth, it would be too late. Unfortunately for you, your little plan has been shot to sunshine," John said, crossing his arms. His eyes wandered toward the doors. It was nighttime and it would be the perfect opportunity to escape. They could travel under cover of darkness and hopefully, not be spotted or noticed by other people.

"So tell me, Acrobat, how long have you known, that I planned to send you and your wife to kill your son?" Ra's asked. He was very impressed to say the least; the man was far more resourceful than even _he_ knew. He had advised Slade not to underestimate John Grayson, only to do so himself.

"A few days," John said. "I'm still amazed you planned something this…diabolical."

"And did you tell your wife you knew all this?"

"No," John replied. "But she knows now."

"And now that you know the truth, what will you both do?" Ra's asked.

"What we think is necessary," John said calmly.

John quickly moved and unsheathed his sword, assuming an aggressive stance he attacked Ra's Al Ghul. Half a dozen ninjas appeared out of nowhere and unsheathed various weapons; they were ready to stop him.

Ra's commanded them to stand down with a flick of his hand. Mary saw her chance to do something as all their attention was focused on her husband. Mary quickly ran over to a nearby wall and grabbed a torch. She had seen a storage closet filled with explosives. If she set them off it would distract Ra's and his followers long enough for her and John to escape.

She just hoped she didn't kill anyone in the process.

The six ninjas saw her and moved to attack without waiting for an order. Ra's was busy fighting John as their blades clashed together.

Mary executed a vertical kick, slamming her foot into the nearest ninja sending him flying backward. She turned her attention to the next ninja, leaping up; she slammed her knee into his face. The man fell with a loud _thump_.

Two assassins unsheathed their swords and moved to strike her. Mary unsheathed her sword and blocked their fierce blows. She slashed down, slamming her blade into the others, expertly warding off both her attackers with ease. All those practice rounds with John on the ice had paid off.

Mary made use of the torch in her other hand and swung it straight at her opponents. She lit the ninjas Shinobi shozoku tunics. Both men jumped back, astonished as they dropped to the floor trying to put out the flames. Mary took advantage of their distraction and launched the torch toward a stockpile of wooden crates.

The torch landed in the middle of the crates and they instantly ignited. There were just two assassins left for her to knock out. Mary launched herself into a roundhouse kick as the last of the assassins came at her. Her feet connected with both men's skulls as they fell back, spitting out blood and saliva.

Moving with incredible speed, Mary somersaulted back, letting her feet smash into their midsections. Landing, she punched one man so hard he was unconscious before he hit the ground. The other avoided the blow only to have the wind knocked out of him by a knee pounding into his stomach.

Mary slammed her elbow into the side of his head, sending the last man to the floor in a crumpled heap. Mary turned her attention back to John and was about to help him battle Ra's Al Ghul when suddenly, several things happened at once.

John slashed his sword out in a horizontal strike. Ra's parried it and turned the blow away. John swung his fist out, connecting with Ra's' face. The terrorist leader accepted the blow, responding by slamming his knee into John's side.

"Gah!" John grunted, trying with all his will not to double over. He then swept his knee out, trying to knock Ra's' legs out from underneath him. Ra's anticipated the move and jumped up. He slammed his sword down and John used the gauntlets on his arm to block the blow.

John quickly kicked out hard, sending Ra's Al Ghul staggering back. Ra's fell but rolled to his feet, ready to attack.

The building was in flames and the roof began to collapse. John looked up as a large beam fell from the roof, along with other debris, landing where Ra's Al Ghul stood. The man fell, and Ubu came running over to where Ra's was. Ignoring him completely, he and the six other assassins frantically began moving the debris, trying to find Ra's.

Taking advantage of the distraction, John grabbed Mary's hand and they rushed towards the doorway. The assassins had either scattered or tried to save Ra's Al Ghul from death as the temple fell to pieces.

Fire lapped hungrily at the wooden beams, devouring everything flammable. It swept across the room until it reached a stack of explosives. The fire raged on as John and Mary ran for the door.

Just then, the explosives detonated, and the entire building was blown to bits.

* * *

_Five Months Ago…_

Robin was frustrated. His investigation of the disappearance of his parents' bodies had gone nowhere. Just when he was ready to leave to search for them, Cinderblock had broken into the Jump City Maximum Security Prison, releasing all the inmates.

The Titans had spent the last month rounding up the fugitives and hauling them off to jail. Robin could have left to search for his parents' bodies, but felt obligated to stay and help his friends before he left.

Robin refused to talk about his parents, no matter how much Starfire begged, pleaded and pestered him regarding the subject. He wasn't ready to talk, he told her that. He never sounded angry, it wouldn't be right for him to be angry with Starfire because she kept asking questions concerning his parents. She was merely curious. He couldn't blame her; he had never said anything about his parents as long as he had known her.

Robin grabbed his still packed bag and slung it over his shoulder. He was ready to go. To his surprise, the others were standing there with their bags packed.

"You all can't leave this city unprotected," Robin said sternly.

"We know, that's why we called Argent, Bushido, Hot Spot, Wildebeest, and Jericho to watch the city while we're away."

"I don't know about this, what if Slade comes back?" Robin asked.

"We'll cross that bridge when we get there," Cyborg said. "We wanna help you find your folks."

"Thanks, I really appreciate it, but don't be too disappointed…my folks are dead, you see. All we're going to find are two skeletons. I want to return them to Gotham Cemetery. Then we're coming home."

"That sounds very depressing, Dude," Beast Boy commented.

"That's because it _is_ depressing, Beast Boy," Robin replied. They went down to the T Car.

"Where're we headed to first?" Cyborg asked.

"Metropolis," Robin answered. Cyborg looked at him, startled.

"Why are we going to Metropolis?" the robotic Titan wondered aloud.

"I have to pay someone a visit," Robin said. They drove straight to Metropolis.

Robin gave Cyborg further instructions and they drove to the building he directed them to. Even Raven was surprised at where they ended up.

"You expect to find your parents' bodies at LexCorp?" Raven asked skeptically.

"I have heard of the Corporation of the Lex, but what I have heard is most unpleasant. They make weapons for your government, correct, Robin?"

"Yes, but that's not all they do," Robin took out his grappling hook and shot it up to a high window of one of the offices. He shot up toward the location and his friends followed. Beast Boy carried Cyborg since he couldn't fly. They hovered in the air and Robin opened the window, slipping inside.

Robin stood in the room, staring straight ahead of him. There was a woman sitting in a chair, typing at her desk, oblivious to his presence. Or so it appeared. Robin, however, knew that she was fully aware that he and his friends had entered her office through the window.

Starfire wondered who she was when Robin spoke.

"Talia," he said flatly. Starfire was startled. Robin knew this woman somehow?

"What do you want with me…?" she asked in a thick accent as she slowly swiveled her chair around to face Robin. "Prodigy…?" She raised an eyebrow at Robin. "Here I was expecting The Detective. You should come to Metropolis more often," Talia said in an accommodating voice.

"This isn't a social visit, Ms. Head," Robin said sternly.

"Please, call me Talia, young Prodigy. Even my Love calls me Talia."

"If you're referring to the Detective as your "Love", I must remind you, he doesn't love you Talia."

"You know he will always love me even if he refuses to acknowledge it," Talia said heavily. "But you didn't come here to discuss my feelings for the Detective, did you?"

"No, I came to discuss your father…and my parents," Robin gave her a hard look.

"As for my Father, well, I have not seen him for some time. As for your parents, I know little more than you do, Prodigy. Why come to me?"

"Because you know your father. Do you know where he is?"

"No, but what do you know about him?" Talia asked.

"I've heard rumors a Lazarus Pit was used recently."

"That is no surprise, my father uses the Lazarus Pits quite often."

"But he is perfectly healthy. The Lazarus Pits are only reserved for the sick, the dying, and the dead."

"This involves the _dead_, does it?" Talia asked, slightly amused. "And when I speak of the dead, I refer to a person or persons close to you?" she steeped her fingers together, resting her hands on the desk. "Tell me, Prodigy, who in your life would you wish to come back from the dead?" Talia asked in a serious voice.

"My parents, and I think your father brought them back," Robin said.

To their shock, Talia began to laugh. "You think my Father has used one of his Lazarus Pits to revive your parents? Even _I_ do not think he would do such a thing."

"What makes you say that?" Beast Boy blurted. Talia looked at him.

"My Father reserves the Lazarus Pit for himself alone. If he _did_ use it to revive your parents, he must be desperate to destroy you…and the Detective."

"We'll be leaving Talia. If Ra's learns of my visit here, I'll know it was you," Robin turned and headed toward the door.

"He will learn of this visit, Prodigy. But he will not hear about it from me. You have my word."

"I don't trust your word, Talia." Robin moved out to the ledge. "Goodbye."

* * *

_Back in the Present… _

Ra's Al Ghul and Ubu, along with several other assassins had made it out of the temple safety. He stared up at the Himalayan temple that had once been one of his many homes, a look of pure fury and hatred on his face. He cursed the day he had ever conceived this mad plan to destroy the Detective through his surrogate son. He cursed the Flying Graysons, and their son who had inadvertently ruined everything.

How could he have known that Mary would recognize her son so quickly? He had shown them the hologram in order to show them their target. He thought that because Robin changed his hair and wore a mask that his parents wouldn't be able to recognize him. Somehow they had, and he hated them for it.

"Now my plans have failed! I should have found another way to break him!" Ra's snarled. "Instead I have given him his heart's desire, how foolish I was to think that I could manipulate his parents. Because of my pride I have lost years of my long existence, wasted on a Gypsy and a dental hygienist!"

"We can still kill them, Master," Ubu said.

Ra's folded his arms, seething with rage. "Yes, that is the only alternative we have. Send the best assassins we have to Jump City."

"Jump City, Master?" Ubu asked.

"Yes, it is where the Prodigy lives. No doubt they will learn this sooner or later. We will be waiting for them. They will never see their son again. If they even make it to Jump City. They will have to get out of Asia first. There is no possible way they could leave the country flying or by train. They don't have any money. If they take any conventional transportation out of the country, I can easily track them and have my men lie in waiting for them wherever they go. But I have a feeling this will all be very unnecessary; both the Graysons would have to survive the explosion. Even if they do, they will not be able to get off the mountain alive. They will be dead by dawn."


	5. Chapter V: Be My Escape

**Chapter V: Be My Escape**

John was propelled forward by the explosion, he shielded his wife's body with his, taking the brunt of the blast. They both fell onto the ground and tumbled down the mountainside.

Both John and Mary came to a stop and John forced himself up onto his elbows. He began crawling toward Mary who wasn't moving.

"Mary? Are you alright?" He rolled her over; to his horror, her eyes were closed. "C'mon, honey, talk to me!"

"Oooh," Mary groaned, opening her eyes. "John?"

"You're alright," John breathed, relieved. "I couldn't bear the thought of losing you." He pulled her into a tight hug.

"I'm okay, John," Mary said holding him. "We have to get out of here."

John forced himself to his feet. He reached out a hand and helped Mary up. They knew they would have a long trek down the mountain. John had also noticed in his observations that there were many assassins stationed on the mountain. Even if he could manage to avoid them in the dark, he knew they might not survive the cold.

_Well, _John thought, _if the entire world thinks you're dead anyway, might as well try to escape. _

John put his arm around Mary, steadying himself in the fluffy, unstable snow. Together, they began staggering down the mountain. He held her shoulders and she had her arm around his waist as they began moving in their slow descent. John spotted a man in snow gear hiding below them in a small crevice in the rocks.

"We have…to stop him. We can't…let him inform the others," John huffed, breathing heavily. Mary nodded. They both knew Ra's had stationed men on the mountain to keep unwanted intruders away, now they were going to try to keep them from escaping.

The man was scanning the area for any signs of life. Ra's Al Ghul had radioed him, informing him of the Graysons discovery and how they were trying to get off the mountain. He was watching for them, ready to kill them whenever they came into view.

"YAAAH!" a voice shouted from above. The assassin looked up in shock to see John Grayson land on him, a swift blow to the face knocked him out cold. John quickly disarmed him and placed the weapons inside his tunic.

Cautiously, they both continued their way down the mountain, hiding behind rocks and crouching inside small crevices before moving a little further toward the distant road.

Suddenly, someone grabbed Mary from behind. She performed a high flip, landing on top of the man's shoulder feet first. The man hit the ground hard as Mary performed a reverse kick, knocking the man out cold.

She slammed her closed fist into the man's face, making sure he wasn't going to wake up. Mary was breathing hard as she stood up.

"C'mon, we have to keep moving," John breathed, "are you all right?"

"Yes," Mary answered.

They found their way down the mountain without any more encounters with the assassins, John had found ways to avoid them. They walked for hours and hours until they came to a small village.

They made their way to the square, weary, they staggered toward a large statue of an ancient warrior holding a sword high above his head. John helped Mary sit down beside him and they rested next to the statue.

John felt exhausted. He just needed to close his eyes, just for a few seconds. Before he was even aware of it, he had drifted off to sleep.

* * *

_Five Months Ago…_

The Titans landed on the pavement as Cyborg stared at Robin.

"Robin, just how do you know that lady, what'd you say her name was, Talia?" Cyborg asked.

"That's a really long story. Get in the car, we can't talk about this here," Robin said, climbing into the front seat of the T Car.

The rest of the Titans strapped in their seatbelts and Cyborg pulled the T Car out of the parking lot of LexCorp.

"Okay, dude, we've left the building, spill," Beast Boy said.

"Fine, I know Talia because when I was younger, when I worked with Batman, Ra's Al Ghul kidnapped me in order to test Batman to see if he was a worthy suitor for Talia."

"But…but that's crazy!" Beast Boy exclaimed.

"You don't know how insane this man is, Ra's Al Ghul was prepared to overrun the world with his Lazarus Pits and kill two-billion, fifty-six-million, nine-hundred and eighty-six thousand people."

Starfire gasped, utterly horrified that anyone would conjure up and attempt to carry out such a horrible, despicable crime against humanity. Ra's Al Ghul made Slade's evil schemes petty, this was beyond what she knew to be evil; it was indescribable.

"Whoa," Raven said.

"Batman stopped this guy, right?" Beast Boy asked.

"Yes, we thought he was dead after he let himself fall into one of his Lazarus Pits, but he came back and he still plots to destroy the world. The thought of him doing something to my parents' bodies makes me more determined than ever to find him…and my parents."

"But what is this Pit of Lazarus that you speak of?" Starfire asked.

"It's a pit in the ground, located along the Earth's fault lines, it is composed of an unknown chemical compound that can heal the sick and revive the dead," Robin explained. "There are very few of them left and Ra's has made sure that only he has access to them."

"If you think he did something to your parents how are you gonna find him?" Cyborg asked.

"We'll start by going to the Sahara Desert, that's where Ra's Al Ghul's Desert Stronghold is. Hopefully, we'll get some answers."

Cyborg summoned the T Ship to Metropolis and after waiting a few hours, they got in, Robin gave Cyborg the coordinates of where they were to go.

"Dude, you didn't tell me we were going overseas, I would've packed some stuff!" Beast Boy complained.

"We can't take our stuff, Beast Boy," Robin said. "This investigation has to be under the government radar, which means we're not going to make ourselves known."

After long hours of flying, they arrived in the Sahara Desert. Landing the T Ship, they all climbed out, Robin pulled out water bottles from the back trunk of the T Ship. He tossed them to the other Titans.

"It's going to be really hot here," Robin said, he began walking to the west.

"We're going to Ra's' Desert Fortress, but be careful, his assassins are everywhere."

They snuck down into the courtyard, slipping toward the door; they peered around, looking for any sign of movement.

"Nobody's home?" Beast Boy asked.

"Ra's Al Ghul and his League of Assassins are nomadic, they move from place to place, they aren't very easy to find."

They made their way inside, Robin turned down a long hallway; Starfire noticed he kept looking for something.

"What are you looking for, Robin?" Starfire asked.

"A certain room…it's got to be here somewhere…" Robin saw a locked door with a keypad. "There it is!"

Robin took out an electro-hack from his utility belt and sliced into the code to open the door. They entered the room and began looking around.

Robin pulled out a small device and pushed a button, he began scanning the room. "Ash," Robin said, bending down, he brushed some of it from the floor. "Cyborg, run a scan on this ash."

Cyborg began running tests on the ash. Minutes later, he got the results. "Can't tell you where it came from. It's some kind of unknown compound."

"The Lazarus Pit," Robin muttered, he moved forward. "Yeah, this Lazarus Pit has definitely been used."

The others gathered around him, peering into the Pit below.

"That stuff looks nasty! Are you sure it revives dead people?" Beast Boy asked.

"Yes," Robin replied. "I've seen it done. It's been used but I can't be sure if it's from when Ra's was last here, or if he actually used it on my parents."

Robin began running his fingers through the ash surrounding the Lazarus Pit. He was feeling for anything that might give him a clue to what had happened to his parents. His fingers fell around something hard, and wooden.

"You found something, Robin?" Cyborg asked.

"Wood," Robin said, feeling the small splinter in his hands. "Ebony…" he began running his finger across it, brushing away the ash. He gasped. Engraved on the wood, he could see the letters _J-O_ inscribed on it.

He had felt deep down inside his gut that they lived. He recalled the reoccurring dream he had about his Mother.

"_I'm sorry, Mom, but this is a dream, isn't it?" _

"_Yes, I suppose it is, but that doesn't mean it's not real." _

The realization hit him like a lightning bolt. How could he have overlooked such a simple phrase? How did he not know what it had meant?

"J-O., John Grayson…but that doesn't mean…it's not real…"

"Dude, you just lost me," Beast Boy said.

"It's something my Mother told me…in a dream. How could I not see that she was trying to tell me that they were alive again?"

"Robin, you know that your parents were alive because of a dream?" Starfire asked, trying not to sound skeptical.

Robin turned to her, "Haven't any of you ever followed something because of a dream?"

* * *

_Back in the Present…_

John felt something prodding him and he jumped up, ready to fight. To his surprise, an old woman stood before him, holding a small crooked walking stick. She stepped back and raised her hands in a peaceful gesture.

"Put your weapons away, I am not here to harm you," the old woman said calmly.

"How do we know that? You could be working for Ra's Al Ghul for all we know," John said suspiciously. He had to be wary; he couldn't trust anyone.

"I know of the ancient one and his evil schemes, but I do not work for the Demon's Head," the old woman said. "It is obvious he is after you, or you would not have mentioned him."

"How do we know we can trust you?" Mary asked.

"You don't know, you will just have to trust me," the woman said. "I wish to offer you a place to stay for tonight. It is very cold and it's getting dark out."

"Why would you do this for us? Wouldn't he come after you?" John inquired. This woman was either crazy or she was skilled enough to ward off the League of Assassins.

"He could try to come after me, but I highly doubt he will. He will not come to my mountain."

"Why is that?" John asked.

"You both ask many questions, come with me to my dojo and I will answer them," the woman said.

"Okay, but…what is your name?" John asked.

"My name is Chui-Hui, but that matters very little to many people. And who might you and your wife be, that the League of Assassins would come after you?"

"How do we know that we can trust you?" John asked.

"One cannot survive without trust, so it must be placed wisely. You don't know if you _can_ trust me, but if you don't then what will you do?" Chui-Hui said simply.

"John, I trust her," Mary said quietly.

"But Mary, how do you know?" John asked, turning to face his wife.

"She's not like Ra's Al Ghul. She's good. That's the only way I can explain it."

"If you can trust her, then I will too," John said. "We will go with you, Chui-Hui." John fell in line behind the elderly woman as she led them toward a high mountain.

They traveled up a worn path as Chui-Hui led them across a bridge. To John's shock, he saw an enormous bear standing upright like a man with his front legs crossed. As if that wasn't startling enough, the bear spoke.

"True Master, do you wish for them to cross the bridge with you?" the Guardian of the River asked.

"Yes, yes, they are not students but strangers in need of hospitality," Chui-Hui, or the True Master, as the bear had called her, said calmly. What did the bear mean, the True Master? What was he talking about, and how did he talk at all?

"You may go ahead and inform the Snake and the Monkey of my guests' arrival. We must hurry, we must arrive at the top of the mountain before nightfall." They walked across a long path until they came to a cave. Entering it, they made their way until they came upon a gigantic snake. It pulled its head up and "stared" at the True Master.

"You may proceed," it said.

"Thank you, old friend," Chui-Hui said. "Be well."

"The snake, he's blind?" Mary asked.

"Yes, he is," Chui-Hui answered.

"Then why does he stay here?" Mary continued.

"He is the Guardian of the Cave, he protects my mountain."

"Your mountain?" Mary asked. "You live up here?"

"The Bear called you the True Master," John interrupted. "Why?"

"Because I am a teacher of the martial arts," Chi-Hui said. "Many young men from all over the world come to my mountain seeking me out to teach them."

They left the cave and continued walking up the steep path.

"Do you train all the students who come looking for you?" John asked.

"Not all," Chui-Hui replied. "Only those who make it up the mountain on their own skills."

"I see," John said. They continued walking until they came to a large open space full of bamboo stalks, carefully balancing their weight with their feet until they came to the other side.

They made their way up a large, long set of stone steps until they reached the top. There was a large dojo at the top of the mountain. They made their way toward the door.

"Come in, come in. It has been a long time since I had visitors besides would-be students." The True Master, Chui-Hui ushered them in, shutting the door behind them.

Chui-Hui began making them some hot tea and bought out pallets for beds and blankets. She also brought them two white tunics for them to change into.

To John's surprise, a monkey came walking in, carrying a small tray with steaming hot tea. "Yes, yes, here is your tea, please drink," the Guardian of the Tree said eagerly.

"Is it just me, or did a monkey just offer us tea?" John looked at his wife, raising an eyebrow.

"Yes, John, the monkey just offered you tea," Mary laughed.

John looked down at the white tunics Chui-Hui had given them. He knew that in the martial arts a white tunic meant that you were a beginning student.

"Chui-Hui, you don't need to do this," John protested. "We are very grateful for your hospitality—"

"I know that, but you'll need more than the training they have given you in order to fight of the Teeth that guard the Head."

"But we can't ask you to train us, it would be a burden to you," John said.

"Nonsense, I have trained many young men but there are very few older ones come seeking me out. I will train you both, you will need all the skill you can get to stay one step ahead of them."

"Why would you do this for us?" Mary asked.

"I have my reasons, perhaps it's because you both remind me of one of my students" Chui-Hui said, bringing the tea and small teacups over to them. "He was a young man, small in stature but very determined. Very honorable, not many like him these days. Others come to me so that they might impress their women with their newfound skills, but not him. He said he wished to use his skills to help others, so that they might be safe, so that they would not have to suffer the grief and loss he himself had experienced."

"This student of yours, did he have a name?" Mary asked, her heart dared to hope that the young man she described was Dick Grayson.

"He called himself Robin," Chui-Hui, noticing the woman's reaction to the name, she continued, "he means something to you, this young student of mine, or you wouldn't ask me questions about him."

"Yes," Mary said, "he's my son."

"I thought so, he looks like you, he also has your fierce determination and your husband's strong will," Chui-Hui laughed. "I am honored that I should meet the parents of an honorable young warrior. Now that we are in my house your husband promised to tell me who you both are and why the League of Assassins are after you both."

"Our names are John and Mary Grayson, the League of Assassins are after us because we would not kill our son."

"I have a feeling that is only part of the reason they are so desperate to kill you both, there's more isn't there?" Chui-Hui asked, slowly sipping her tea.

"Yes, there is more, they want to kill us because…Ra's Al Ghul used a Lazarus Pit to revive us," John said, it made sense to him. It was also a good motive to make sure to teach his followers not to try to use his Lazarus Pits on others.

"I know of these mysterious Lazarus Pits that the Demon uses to lengthen his life. Such things are evil, long life corrupts the soul."

"Other things do that, too," John added. "Like greed."

"Yes, but the Lazarus Pits Ra's uses give him unnatural long life, he is practically immortal, or so I have heard. If one knows that he cannot die, life doesn't really matter."

"But for my wife and I…we who lost what should have been ours…a second chance is everything."

"Yes, that is true, but be careful, if they are intent on killing you, you must become very hard to kill. I'll leave you two to sleep. We will begin training in the morning."

Chui-Hui left and slid the wooden slat door softly behind her. John moved closer to Mary, who was shivering.

"Are you going to get changed now?" he asked, concerned.

"Yes, if you'll have the decency to give me some privacy," Mary said, turning away from him, she grabbed the tunic and pulled off her wet clothes. John complied, turning his face away and staring off at the wall.

Mary pulled on the pants and wrapped the tunic around her body, tying it around herself. She turned around to find, to her surprise that John was staring at her with a raised eyebrow and a mischievous look on his face.

"John Frederick Grayson!" Mary scolded. "You watched me dress, didn't you?" she seethed.

"I'm your husband, is it wrong for me to watch you dress?" he asked, winking.

"It is, when I asked you to give me some privacy," Mary glared at him.

"I'm sorry, I know I constantly tease and annoy you and don't do what you say, but I love you," John said apologetically, wrapping his arms around her waist and kissing her cheek sweetly.

"You're going to drive me insane, you know that?" Mary sighed, frustrated.

"I know that, but it's one of the many ways I show you I love you," John laughed.

"Are there other ways besides you annoying and teasing me?" Mary asked.

"Yes, but we don't have time for that now, we'll be too tired in the morning," John said, kissing the side of her neck.

"John, I wasn't talking about _that_," Mary scolded. "A kiss will be fine."

"I'll kiss you then," John said, turning her around, he pressed his lips to hers, holding her, close, he deepened it, sweeping her fingers through her hair and lowering her onto the soft mat.

She broke the kiss, "John, there's no time."

"I know, good night," John pulled away; he went over to a corner and changed into his tunic. He placed his mat beside hers; covering them in the soft blankets Chui-Hui had provided them. They both drifted off into a deep, dreamless sleep. They were safe, for a time at least.

* * *

A blonde-haired man stood inside a lavishly furnished house, cleaning a katana. There was a loud beeping as a hologram appeared before him from a screen.

"Shrike," Ra's Al Ghul's voice rang through the room, echoing off the walls. "We have an assignment for you."

"I am ready and willing, Ra's Al Ghul. But my services will require payment."

"Of course, of course, what do you want?" Ra's asked.

"My usual fee," Shrike said. "Who is the target?"

"Targets," Ra's corrected. "They are a husband and wife, the husband is 6 ft 1" and the wife is 5 ft 5". They will be traveling together. Find them and make sure they are dead. You will not receive your payment until then. Should you succeed, I will increase your payment considerably."

"Very well. Is there anything else I should know?" Shrike asked.

"Yes, the man and his wife are John and Mary Grayson," Ra's said.

"John and Mary _Grayson_, did you say?" Shrike asked, "as in _Dick Grayson_?"

"Yes," Ra's replied. "You remember Dick Grayson, don't you, Boone?"

"It took me a long time to discover his true identity, but yes, I remember him, he is responsible for the death of my Master, the second Shrike. I have been searching for him for years."

"Obviously you still hold a grudge from your days with him at the Vengeance Academy."

"Only tell me where he is so that I may kill him," Boone hissed.

"There will be no need for that, only kill the boy's parents and you will have your revenge. I find it hard to believe that you once called Dick Grayson your friend."

"I thought he was my friend, but he was a liar and a spy. He will pay for letting my Master die at the hands of Two-Face."

"That is why I gave you this assignment," Ra's smiled, "not only will you be persistent in hunting down the Graysons, you will enjoy doing it."

"Just tell me where the Graysons are, and I will kill them."


	6. Chapter VI: Far Away

**Chapter VI: Far Away**

_Four Months Ago_

Robin sat down next to the roaring fire in an empty part of the Kravian countryside. He had visited the country once, touring with Haly Circus shortly before his parents were murdered. The Titans had left the Sahara and were traveling through Europe, tracking the League of Assassins. Robin was thinking about everything that had happened. The revelation that parents were alive had totally turned his view of life upside-down. What would he do when he found them? Would he retire from being Robin? What was he supposed to do? His parents were the main reason he had become Robin, with their return, was being Robin an important priority?

He thought about the decisions he would have to make. Dick recalled the time when Bruce had told him he would no longer be Robin; he had run away from Wayne Manor and had gone after Mr. Freeze when he had stolen the blood bank from Gotham General Hospital.

He had stopped Mr. Freeze without Batman's help and had left his utility belt and mask to burn in a trashcan. It was then that Boone and two other ninjas attacked him and after he defeated them Shrike had recruited him to become a student of his "Vengeance Academy", a secret school for young assassins.

He had stopped them from killing Two-Face after one of his former cronies, a man named Mr. Joey Minette paid them for a contract hit on the psychopath. Batman and Robin had stopped them and brought in Two-Face.

That was one of the few times he was offered a chance to relinquish being Robin, after all these years, he thought that he would always be a crime fighter, but now, those thoughts of a normal life were beginning to creep back in.

"Hello, Robin," Starfire's voice said as she sat down beside him, "What is on your mind? You have been deep in thought for hours."

"Yes, I've just been thinking about everything that's been going on lately," Robin replied, looking up at her.

"Have patience, Robin. We will find your parents," Starfire reassured him.

"That's not what I'm thinking about. I have no doubt I'll find them. It's what I'm going to do _after_ I find them that I'm thinking about."

"What do you wish to do after you find them?" Starfire asked, curious.

"I'm not sure, I was thinking about retiring…from being Robin."

"What? But Robin…you have always been this way ever since I met you. I do not know you by any other name and I have always seen you as being Robin. You—you cannot stop—I would not know what to do! When I went to the future you called yourself Nightwing, and you were still the same as you are now, except for a different costume."

"The future is not fixed, but fluid. That was twenty years from now. A lot can happen between now and then. Just because I'm thinking about giving up being Robin doesn't mean I will."

Robin saw Starfire struggling desperately to hold back the tears in the corner of her eyes. He realized that she had never known the other side of him, the other part of him that had lain dormant for so long, the part of him named Dick Grayson. He realized that in her mind, if he was something other than Robin, she didn't know what he would be.

Robin moved closer to her wrapping both arms around her shoulders. "Look at me, Star. I will always be Robin, but before Robin came, I was different, I was happy, and although I am happy now, it was a different kind of happiness. You know I love you, that won't change. It's just…I'm very complicated."

"But what—?" Starfire asked.

Robin gently pressed his lips to hers, trying to comfort her with his kiss. He felt her respond and pull him close. He let his gloved fingers travel through her hair and held her a little longer.

He pulled away. "I'm just thinking out loud okay, so don't worry about it."

"But Robin, I do not understand," Starfire looked at him.

"What don't you understand?" Robin asked.

"About you, what you were before you became Robin. Please, will you tell me about your life then?"

"Yes, my name is Dick Grayson. As Raven has confirmed, my parents fell to their deaths on a high wire trapeze while they were performing. Many of the newspapers said it was an accident, but I knew it was murder."

"But why did your parents die?" Starfire asked.

"My parents were murdered because of greed, money and revenge. That is the only reason they died…and now, to have them back, it makes me feel something I haven't felt in years."

"What is that?"

"Happy. Really, truly happy, there has always been a void in my life that could only be filled with my parents."

"I have disturbed you too long, I should—" Starfire was preparing to leave.

"Don't leave, sit and stay awhile. We can watch the stars. It's something my parents used to do a lot when I was younger." That was what they did for long hours that night; they watched the stars and wondered about the future.

The next day they began searching a part of the city; Robin made his way into a tavern. The bartender looked up at him. Robin saw the certain buzz cut and the White Power tattoos. The bartender was a Skinhead. That was not good, being half Romani made him on the top of the man's most hated list.

"Get out, you stinking Gypsy!" a man shouted, "We don't serve your kind here!"

"Hey! Leave him alone!" Cyborg shouted.

"Don't worry, you can take it easy, Cyborg. We're leaving. I don't want trouble."

"Consider yourself lucky, Vagrant. One day, Prince Balsik will butcher all of you!" the Skinhead shouted, he reached out and pulled a gun as Robin turned his back.

"Robin!" Starfire shouted a warning. But Robin was already moving, removing a Bird-a-Rang from his utility belt. The man fired but the Boy Wonder threw the bird-shaped shuriken straight at the man, sending the gun slamming into the wall.

About six other Skinheads leaped out, carrying various weapons. Robin jumped forward with a cry of, "Titans, go!" the others joined him.

Cyborg grabbed one of them and tossed him over into a table. The man fell, knocking his head against the door; unmoving, he slumped over. Starfire blasted the crowbar from a man's hand as he tried to strike her. She then sent her foot smashing up into his stomach. The man gagged and fell over.

Beast Boy transformed into a gorilla and grabbed two men by their collars and sent them flying back behind the counter and into the shelves filled with different types of beer. The bottles fell off the shelves with a loud _crash_ and landed on their heads.

Raven chanted, "Azarath, Metrion, Zinthos," and summoned her powers to grab a man and send him flying up toward the ceiling, the man's head smacked into a beam and he was slammed into the floor by Raven's powers.

Robin slammed his fist in an uppercut into the last Skinhead's jaw, he elbowed him in the stomach and twisted his hand around the man's arm as he tried to punch him, he slammed his hand down, forcing the man's arm to bend painfully. The man screamed and stumbled; Robin brought his elbow down on the back of the man's head and the man hit the floor unconscious.

Robin cuffed all the men and lined them up against the wall. "See to it the police arrest these guys," he highly doubted anyone in the bar would actually call the police. Kravia was a very dangerous country with a very racist man as its leader. He and his friends would have to be very careful. It would be best to get out of the country as soon as possible.

The Titans made their way outside the bar. Cyborg placed his hand on Robin's shoulder and stopped him.

"What just happened in there?" he asked.

"We just got attacked by six Skinheads," Robin answered, pointing out the obvious.

"I know that, but why did they go after you? I'd understand them going after me, I'm African American. But you, why'd they call you a Gypsy?"

"Because I'm half Romani, that's the way it's been for years, so I try to be careful," Robin answered.

"Please, what is a Gypsy?" Starfire asked.

"They are a nomadic people who travel in groups, sometimes they join the circus or do odd jobs, my family and I were part of Haly Circus as acrobats."

These "Skinheads" as you called them, they attacked you just because of your nationality," Starfire said.

"Yes," Robin said. "We have to leave. We're not safe here."

"But where will we go?" Raven asked.

"Paris. I have to ask someone a question," Robin said.

"Who?" Beast Boy asked.

"Henri Ducard," Robin told them, "He's a freelance assassin, and amoral. He has occasionally taken assignments from the League of Assassins. If anyone knows where they are, he might."

"Okay, we're off the Paris, then!" Cyborg shouted; he began preparing the T Ship for launch. Robin wondered just where this journey might take him.

* * *

_Back in the Present…_

"Good, good," Chui-Hui said, "Keep your defenses up, Mary, you're too aggressive. " Mary ducked and avoided a wide strike as her husband moved to strike, slamming his fist into her face. She managed to avoid it and kicked out, sending him flying backward. She ran forward, somersaulting both feet hit John in the chest and knocked him to the ground.

"But I won, Sensei," Mary said, looking at the True Master. Chui-Hui only stared at her, expressionless.

"Winning does not always matter, Mary Grayson. You are very competitive, much like your son."

"Is that wrong?" Mary asked.

"No, but that kind of attitude might get you into trouble," Chui-Hui said. "You both are ready to leave. Your training is complete. Be on your guard. They will never stop hunting you."

"Thank you, Chi-Hui," John said. He and Mary grabbed their few belongings and headed down the mountain. Traveling on foot, they came across a gypsy camp.

A Romany man looked up, startled as John approached him.

"Na daran Romale vi ame sam Rom chache," John greeted. What he said was, "Do not fear, you Gypsy men, for we too are Gypsies." The man looked relieved.

"Droboy tume Romale!" the man said, meaning, "It is good to see you, Rom!" a traditional Romani greeting.

"Nais tuke," John thanked him.

"My name is Yoska Graesinka," Yoska said. "Why are you here?"

"We need a place to stay; we have recently fled where we were staying due to…persecution." It was the only logical explanation without lying that John Grayson could come up with.

"I see, I will help you, then," Yoska said. He didn't even seem to acknowledge Mary.

Within a few days, they had erected a makeshift tent to keep them dry from the weather; John went out and broke into the League of Assassins bank accounts, particularly Orpheus Industries bank accounts. He used the money to buy food and equipment for them.

It was late at night as John snuck into the small tent where he and Mary were staying. To his surprise, he saw Mary sitting by a light, reading a book.

"I'm surprised you have time for that, considering how we live these days," John said, putting a hand on her shoulder.

"This isn't _living,_ John. This is _existing_," Mary sighed. She turned her attention back to her book.

"_The Prestige_, huh?" John asked. "I heard that was a good book. About rival magicians, illusionists, I gather."

"Indeed, magicians, we've seen them quite a bit, haven't we?" Mary asked, amused. Haly Circus had a magician. She had always enjoyed his slight-of-hand tricks. She had asked him once how they worked but he said, 'the secret impresses no one,' and turned away with a laugh.

"So what do you think of the book?" John asked.

"Oh, it's interesting enough. Magicians, slight-of-hand," Mary said. "The story's very complex. I hope I'll get to finish it, seeing that we can't stay in one place for too long."

"You'll get to finish it, I'm sure," John laughed. "I'm going to check on everything. Make sure we're safe, all right? Good night, Mary."

"Good night, John," Mary turned her attention back to _The Prestige_. A phrase caught her eye. _No one cares about the man in the box…_

They had been there a few weeks before John decided it was time for them to move on. They packed up and moved out of the country with the Gypsies. They began traveling across Asia until they reached Kravia, where unbeknownst to them, Robin had been a few months earlier.

One day they were making their way down the street when John felt like they were being watched and whispered in Mary's ear as they walked down the street, "Get inside the theater! We're being followed."

They ducked inside the busy theater. They blended in with the crowd and ducked by the ticket taker using their training.

They watched as a woman in a costume of a magician came out onto stage. "Good evening folks, I'm Zatanna!" the woman said. "Prepare yourselves for a night of magic!"

Zatanna proceeded to perform various magic tricks and illusions. The Graysons were very entertained, although they both keep a wary eye on the doorway for the ticket taker or Ra's Al Ghul's assassins.

John and Mary snuck out the back door as soon as the show was over. They began walking quickly down the street.

"Hello," a voice said cheerfully. "You two seem like you're both in a hurry."

John looked up, startled. It was the magician Zatanna herself, still dressed in costume.

"We're—we're looking for a place to stay," John said, which was partially true. They needed to hide somewhere so they could figure out how to get back to the States to find Dick.

"Well, I suppose you both could stay with me, it's been a long time since I've had company," Zatanna said.

"Why's that?" John asked. She seemed like a good person. Maybe she could help them.

"I'm on the road 24/7. Don't exactly have time for company. What are your names?"

"John and Mary," John replied, shaking her hand.

"Last names?" Zatanna inquired.

"Doesn't matter," John said. "It really doesn't."

"Okay, I won't bother you about it." She showed them to her trailer. "I'll make places for you both in the living room.

Mary looked at the various magicians' props with interest. She peered down and saw one of those large chests that magicians often climbed into and disappeared.

"No one cares about the man in the box…" Mary muttered.

"Ah, _The Prestige, _a good book. "You've read it?"

"I'm reading it at the moment, about halfway done, actually," Mary admitted. So the Graysons talked for a long time until Zatanna said she was going to bed. John thanked her for her hospitality. John said they'd leave in the morning.

The next day, they woke up and got ready to leave. Zatanna offered them breakfast and wished them well.

"I guess this is goodbye, Zatanna," John said quietly. She had helped them, giving them a place to stay, but John had to wonder, how did she know who they were? Sure they had been famous, but how did she recognize them after all those years? They had never seen her before, they had heard of her Father John Zatarra, the famous illusionist, but they had never seen him in person.

"Be safe. I know that you and your husband are being pursued by the League of Assassins," Zatanna said. Mary stared at her.

"H-How did you know that?" she asked.

"Because I'm a magician," Zatanna replied.

"We know you're a magician. We've seen your show," Mary said.

"No, no. I mean _real_ magic, Mary Grayson, yes I know your name too. It comes with the gift."

"Is that why you helped us?" John asked.

"Yes, and I know you are both good people. You best leave under cover of darkness. You'll get out of this country safer that way."

"We will," John said. They walked away from Zatanna. Heading toward the train that would take them to the airport. Suddenly, John stopped.

"Mary, look!" John pointed to a man in a Shinobi Tunic.

"Ra's' Teeth," Mary agreed.

"Let's jump him." John knew it would be dangerous, but it was better that they stop them before they got their heads blown off by a sniper rifle.

The man felt the blow come out of nowhere. John tackled him to the ground and pinned him down, grabbing him by the throat.

"One sound and I start squeezing!" he snarled. The man nodded.

"What's Ra's planning? Did he send you to kill us?" The man nodded, an apparent "yes".

"Rumor has it Ra's has a warehouse in this city. Where is it?" John demanded.

"Just down the street, the "abandoned" warehouse," the man gasped out.

"What's the pass code to the locks?" John demanded.

"Its' 4-8-15-16-23-42," the man answered. John hit him across the face, knocking him out cold. They made their way to the warehouse and John accessed the doors and opened them with the code.

John walked over to a bunch of boxes in the warehouse. "Look at all this; it looks like these fellas were ready for a small war. You think this is for the guys he's sending to kill us?"

"I don't know," Mary answered, it was a possibility.

"I honestly think it's time we sent Ra's Al Ghul a message," John said. "If he has declared war on us—"

"—We should return the favor. No doubt he's send his sacks of meat after us," Mary said, picking up the Laser Rifle.

"I agree with you John asked, raising an eyebrow.

"These high tech puppies are from the Department of Extranormal Operations, right?" John asked.

"So I gathered from the Assassins database," Mary muttered. "They haven't been able to find this stuff. Why would the League of Assassins steal it? Ra's has money growing out his ears."

"I'm not sure; Ra's has bank accounts all over the world that nobody can trace. What should we do with it?"

"I suppose we should return it to the D.E.O, but what about this other stuff?"

"We should take it," John said, "The League of Assassins would use it anyway."

"But John, that's stealing!" Mary shouted.

"Don't you know anything about my culture? Some Romani believe it's okay to steal from the Gaje."

"Do you believe that?" she asked.

"Normally, I'd say no, but this time I'll make an exception."

Mary found a leather coat and put it on, she also found gray pants and black combat boots. She searched the warehouse and found small explosives, Flash/bang grenades. In a crate there was a stash of exotic weapons from all around the world. One caught her eye. A kris. The beautifully curved weapon was very dangerous. It was also said that it gave the user good luck. She picked it up and slipped it inside her jacket. She found a Glock 18 and loaded it. She never knew when she might need it.

John found dark pants and dark colored body armor. Slipping it on, he grabbed a utility belt and filled the pouches with explosives and shuriken. He spotted a long tan colored trench coat and put it on. He was ready to go.

Mary helped John pick up the crate and load it into a tuck they had seen parked in the parking lot. John drove down to the nearest D.E. O. office and quickly unloaded them near the front door. They quickly jumped back into the truck and drove off.

They suddenly heard the loud _shoop, shoop, shoop, _of gunfire as bullets hit the back of the truck.

"That's not good," John muttered. He swerved the truck to a hard right, trying to avoid gunfire. He then swerved to the left, trying to stay ahead of their assailants.

Suddenly, John heard the hissing of a tire that had been hit by something. He knew it wasn't a bullet and came to the horrible realization of who one of their assailants was.

"Merlyn!" he exclaimed. Mary looked worried. Merlyn was one of Ra's' deadliest assassins. He was an extremely skilled archer rivaling Green Arrow. It was said he rarely missed. He was also a skilled hand-to-hand combatant. Stopping him wouldn't be easy.

John slammed on the brakes and pulled the truck to a skidding halt as he and Mary jumped out. Mary landed on her feet and somersaulted out of the way of oncoming gunfire.

Merlyn suddenly leapt from a car, firing two arrows at once, one aimed at John, the other at Mary. The arrow barely missed John as he back flipped over it. Mary could feel the sharp tip graze her skin drawing blood as she avoided the arrow, her arm cut open as she dodged it. It was a superficial wound, but it really hurt.

John removed a collapsible Bo Staff from his utility belt and twirled it, deflecting arrows that came his way; meanwhile he grabbed a flash/bang grenade and threw it straight at Merlyn's feet. The grenade exploded, blinding the assassin for a second as John leapt forward and slammed his staff down on the man's head.

The man accepted the blow then slammed his bow into John's face. John ducked, ramming his knee into the man's gut. Grabbing a shuriken, he jabbed it into Merlyn's knee. The assassin grabbed an arrow and thrust the tip into John's shoulder.

Grunting, John ignored the searing pain and elbowed Merlyn in the face. He head-butted his attacker and executed a high kick, slamming his booted foot into the man's face. Merlyn staggered back at the unexpected maneuver and John grabbed him by the throat.

Mary dealt with two men who had teamed up against her with swords in their hands. Kris in hand, she was ready for them. One man leapt up and the other went down low, one aimed for her head, the other her heart.

Anticipating both moves, she twisted away, blocking the blow aimed for her head. She kicked one of the men in the gut and somersaulted back, slamming her feet into the other's face while the first man staggered back.

Mary slashed at him, he parried the blow and struck back, swinging from right to left; he brought the sword up and smashed it down on her knife. The blow as so strong Mary struggled to grip the handle of her weapon.

Whirling quickly, Mary kicked out at the man's face, sending him falling back while at the same time, hurling her knife into his shoulder. The man cried out and fell down, holding his bleeding shoulder.

"Ha! Now you have no weapon!" the other man gloated. He brought his sword down; Mary blocked it with the gauntlet on her arm and slammed her knee up into his groin. The man groaned and fell down, she then knocked him over the head so he wouldn't get up.

"Why do you keep doing that?" John asked.

"Because it works," she answered simply.

"If you keep that up they're gonna start calling you "Mary Grayson the Groin Kicker" and then all our enemies will resort to wearing cups," John said, sounding serious but trying very hard not to burst out laughing.

"Can we finish this conversation later? We need to find Robin," Mary said humorlessly, crossing her arms. John turned his attention back to Merlyn.

"Where's Robin?" John demanded, slamming Merlyn against the wall. The assassin glared at him. John elbowed him in the face and tightened his grip around his throat. Still, Merlyn glared defiantly at him.

"Very well, you leave me no choice!" John snarled. He removed a truth serum from his utility belt. He didn't like the thought of using it, but it was necessary. He jabbed Merlyn's arm. The man grunted and then the drug started working and his eyes became glazed over.

"I'll ask you again, Merlyn. Where's Robin?" John demanded.

Merlyn's head sagged and he began to mumble, "He's…he's in…J—Jump City…That's where he is." John punched the assassin in the face, rendering him unconscious.

John and Mary tied them up and left them by the supply truck that the Graysons had taken from the warehouse. John and Mary bandaged their wounds and confiscated the ammunition and weapons the assassins had used. They climbed in the assassins' car, loading the shipment of D.E.O. weapons in the back.

Dropping the weapons off at a D.E.O. office under the cover of darkness, Mary and John made their way straight to the airport where they boarded an airplane using phony passports they had stolen from the League of Assassins to leave Kravia, bound for the Jump City Airport. John and Mary stared out the windows; it had been so long since they had seen him, he had been so far away from them, but now they were going to see their son again.


	7. Chapter VII: Surprise

**Chapter VII: Surprise **

_If you're all wondering what a Tonfa is, it's those escrima like weapons that Robin used in the Teen Titans episode "Can I Keep Him?" on Johnny Rancid's dog. They're like escrima sticks except they have handles that you hold on to instead of escrima sticks that you just hold on to the handle._

_Three Months Ago_

The streets of Paris, France teemed with people milling about. Robin and the other Titans were trailing an elusive mercenary named Henri Ducard. He was a notorious criminal, dealing in illegal arms and espionage. He was wanted on four continents and was a deadly fighter. The Titans had tracked him all across Paris. Robin gestured to the Titans to stay back.

"I don't want any of you to get hurt. I can handle him alone, just stay back and if it looks like I need help then you come in," Robin ordered. The Titans faded into the shadows. Robin moved forward and grabbed Ducard by the shoulder. Henri spun around and swung his fist at Robin, blocked the blow and prepared to strike back when he felt cold steel pressed against his forehead. No wonder he was able to evade the authorities in four different countries, he was very good.

"Are you going to kill me?" Robin asked calmly.

"I could easily do so," Ducard said coldly. He kept the gun to the Boy Wonder's head. It would only take a fraction of a second for him to pull that trigger. Robin knew there was a slim chance that the Titans could get over to Ducard before he blew his brains out with the 9mm handgun. Robin was also a skilled fighter, he could easily dodge the shot but fighting Ducard would get him nowhere, he needed information, and he wouldn't get it by chasing Ducard all over France.

"You won't be able to," Robin said confidently. "I'm not exactly easy to kill."

"As much as I'd love to test your theory, I am curious, why are you following me?"

"I want information Ducard, has the League of Assassins given you any jobs?" Robin demanded.

"Now, as amusing as I find this question, I don't see any good reason to answer it, I think I'll plug you, instead, boy," Henri said, squeezing the trigger.

Robin batted the gun away from the assassin, elbowing Ducard across the face, the man retaliated by ramming his head into the Boy Wonder, causing him to stagger back.

Ducard grunted and kicked out, hitting Robin's midsection. The Boy Wonder somersaulted back and blocked the assassin's blows as he retaliated with a hard punch in the man's gut. With a quick reversal, Robin executed a high kick, slamming his steel-toed boot into Henri's forehead. There was a small gash of blood that trickled off as the assassins angrily slammed his fist across Robin's face, sending him falling backward, Ducard slammed his knee into Robin's stomach, knocking the wind out of him.

Robin fell to the ground and the Titans jumped out of their hiding places immediately activating their powers or weapons, ready to defend their leader. Ducard looked up at them with a derisive smirk on his face. Robin suddenly leapt up and slammed his fist into the mercenary's chin, he whipped out a needle filled with what looked to Cyborg like a Truth Serum and jabbed it into Ducard's arm; Robin relentlessly pounded his closed fists into the man's, midsection and face continually keeping him off balance. Robin suddenly performed a high back flip and slammed both feet into Ducard who fell against the wall hard and glared up at the young vigilante.

"I'm actually impressed," Ducard congratulated. "What do you want to know?"

"Has Ra's Al Ghul asked you to train anyone for the League of Assassins?" Robin demanded.

"No, he has not, why so interested, boy?" Ducard asked.

"That's none of your business!" Robin hissed. "Thanks…"

"Allow me to congratulate you," Ducard sneered, he quickly removed a small knife from his shoe and slashed at Robin, aiming for his heart, Robin twisted his wrist and forced Henri to drop the knife.

"I didn't finish, what I meant to say was…"Thanks…for nothing." Good bye, Ducard." Robin turned on his heel and began walking away.

"As I said before, I congratulate you, apparently Bruce has chosen a worthy protégé." Robin stopped and looked over his shoulder.

"What are you talking about?"

"Don't play coy, you and I both know who the Batman _really _is, but I have my own reasons for keeping his identity a secret. We will part ways with a bit of advice for you. It is easy to become your enemy, the trick is to remain yourself." With that Ducard walked away, disappearing into the shadows.

"What was that all about?" Cyborg asked. "And who is Bruce?"

"I don't want to talk about it, not here, maybe later. Come on, we've got to go. It's time I found someone who actually knows what Ra's is up to."

"I don't believe it, we chased this guy all over Paris and he was a dud," Beast Boy complained.

"Not completely," Robin said, just because Ra's didn't have Henri train my parents doesn't mean he's not on his payroll. I put a microscopic tracking device on him.

"How'd you do that?" Cyborg asked. "I thought you jabbed him with a Truth Serum."

"Is not your mentor against such methods of interrogation?" Starfire asked.

"Yes, but that wasn't a Truth Serum, that was the tracking device I told you about. We should get going."

"Somehow I feel like it's going to be a long time before we find out anything," Raven said.

"No, Raven, actually, I have a feeling that getting answers from Ubu."

"Ubu, who is Ubu?" Starfire asked.

"He's Ra's' right hand man, if there's anyone who knows what Ra's' plans are, it's him."

"Where to next?" Cyborg asked.

"The Himalayas," Robin replied. "I want to visit the True Master again, maybe she knows something. She lives near the temple where Ra's sometimes stays."

"How come Ra's never bothers her if she lives so close to him?" Beast Boy asked.

"I'm not sure, maybe it's because of the Guardians on the Mountain."

They arrived at the T Ship and Cyborg prepared to take off. Robin hoped this next lead would pay off. He wanted to find his parents. He wanted answers, and Ubu was going to give them to him.

* * *

_Back in the Present_

"It's so beautiful," Mary said, staring out over the city standing on the Sky Needle, the highest point in the city with John. They had landed in the Jump City Airport in the early evening. They had spent most of the flight sleeping; saving their strength to explore the city their son lived in.

They had arrived quietly, picking up the weapons and machine guns they had check in to airport security, they had used the fake IDs to get them through, fortunately, one of the assassins was female and had a strong resemblance to Mary so she could use the ID to get by.

They began scouring the city, mainly looking for a place to stay. There were the conventional places, hotels, houses, apartments, but those would be too risky, the League of Assassins could find anyone when they wanted to.

"Yeah, it is," John replied, putting his arm around her shoulder. "I read in the newspaper he's been gone for the last six months, overseas."

"What do you think he was doing?" Mary asked, resting her head on her husband's shoulder.

"What else? Looking for us, if he wasn't he'd be here," John looked at her. "Mary, you're having a Blonde moment."

"I am not!" Mary glared at him. She had a dislike of Blonde jokes.

"Yes, you are, or you'd know what your son is doing," he laughed, his wife was normally sharp as a pin, but all that jet lag was making her confused.

"I am not having—Oh, never mind. Fine, I had a Blonde moment, so stop laughing at me!" she began grinding her teeth.

"That's not good for your teeth you know," John observed.

"Yeah, I was a dental hygienist, remember, I had to fix your teeth after they got knocked out."

"Yeah, I know, it was the best day of my life," John laughed, smiling.

"That's not exactly my definition of "the best day of my life"," Mary responded, slipping an arm around him.

"I know, but it's the day I met you," John tilted his wife's chin up so she could look into his dark eyes. He leaned down and kissed her, drifting into the warmth of her embrace, washing the worries away by losing them in his love for her. Their love had always been this way, warm, caring, understanding. Not that they didn't have disagreements or fights, everyone did that, but he always tried to listen to her whenever he didn't understand what she was trying to tell him. It was one of the things that kept their marriage strong.

Not to mention that he was an extremely good kisser, that was the other reason they'd stayed married so long, physical affection was one of his strengths.

John gently coaxed her mouth open with his tongue, feeling her breathing become heavier as their osculation intensified. Mary gripped his broad shoulders and held him close. He smiled inwardly, she had always had a strong grip; she had to in order to hold onto the trapeze bars every night.

John Frederic Grayson felt his fingers slip down from her face and start to travel down her body. Mary realized where his hand was inevitably moving lower toward her rib cage and realized that she had awakened his need for her. This...this wasn't right, not here, not now, especially not now.

"John, we shouldn't…we don't know who's watching," Mary said, pulling away suddenly.

"C'mon, who can see me kissing you up on the top of this thing anyway?" John asked, drawing her close again.

"You never know, John, what's gotten into you anyway? You've always been very affectionate but it's like you've gone back to being a teenager," Mary stared at him.

"I don't know, but I kind of like it," John laughed.

"I wonder if the Lazarus Pit affects men's libido. I swear yours has gone through the roof."

"Is that bad? You act like you're too old for it," John wondered where this conversation was going.

"I just don't think…I want to get pregnant again," Mary said quietly. "It'd be too hard for me to have to worry about having another kid…"

"Because Dick's grown up without you," John held her tightly against his chest. "Don't worry, Mary, you won't be having another baby any time soon. I'd worry too much if you got pregnant, considering the situation we're in right now. And Dick would freak anyway."

"Thank you for understanding," she sighed.

"Why didn't we have any more kids after we had Dick anyway?" John asked.

"We were the Flying Graysons, I didn't have time to get pregnant."

"Good point, but just because intimacy isn't on the agenda doesn't mean I can't kiss you whenever I want," he smiled.

"You always need an excuse, don't you?" Mary asked, her lips centimeters from his.

"Yes, and the excuse I have is a good one," John said, smiling.

"What's that?" she whispered. He wasn't teasing her this time; he was serious.

"That I love you," he answered. John meant every word of it, all teasing aside; he knew she needed to know he loved her. If he forgot to say it even once, she noticed.

"That's a good excuse," Mary murmured, pressing her mouth against his. John's arms found a comfortable place round Mary's waist while her fingers moved up and through his dark hair. For a moment there was no Slade, no Ra's Al Ghul, no League of Assassins, there was just them, and that was all that mattered.

"We need to go," John said, pulling away. "We have to find a place to sleep." The real world, along with reality set back in. They couldn't stay outside forever.

They made their way across the city until they found the docks with rows and rows of warehouses. They wondered if they were being used, there were no trucks going in and out of them, no people loading and unloading crates to be stored away. It might be abandoned.

"Y'know, Mary, if this place stays this way, we could live here," John said. Mary stopped, turned and stared at him.

"You're not serious are you?" Mary asked.

"I'm quite serious about this, just think, if we try to live anywhere conventional, they'll find us or someone else will discover we're supposed to be dead and then we'll be put in jail for identity theft or something like that. Besides, who's going to look for us down here?"

"I don't know, John. Do you think we could pull it off?" Mary asked.

"Yeah, we'd just have to keep the outside the way it is, then we'd make the inside of the warehouse livable."

"Don't you think we should have two place to live, in case we get discovered?" Mary asked. It was a practical thought, she'd always been practical, thinking and planning ahead in case anything happened.

"Yeah, did you see anywhere that would be a good place to hide out?" John inquired.

"There's an abandoned circus on the North Side of town, it's a good place to hide," Mary said. John looked at her like she had just told him she could jump over the moon.

"But we raised Dick in the circus, we'd be crazy to go back there!" John stared at her.

"Not exactly, the way I see it, in any of the assassins' minds, the circus is a place where we _don't _want to go because of the memories we have of Haly's. They probably think I have nightmares about dying there."

"_Do_ you have nightmares of Haly Circus?" John looked at her with a serious expression on his face.

"Sometimes, but not much anymore," Mary sighed. "Why would they look for us there?"

"If they're smart, they'll figure out how you think and go there first," John crossed his arms.

"Yes, but we won't _be _there, then after they ransack the circus, then we'd go back there and fix everything."

"And what if they find this place first, huh?"

"The circus works as backup for that too," Mary smiled at him smugly.

"I'm half tempted to find a way to wipe that smug grin off your pretty face," John laughed teasingly.

"Well you'll have to do it later, we better get inside," Mary said.

Making their way inside the warehouse, John and Mary settled into a corner of the building.

"It's really cold in here," Mary said, her teeth chattering.

"Here, take my coat. It'll keep you warm," John removed his trench coat and wrapped it lovingly around his wife's shoulders.

"Warmer?" he asked, stroking her face.

"Yes, much," Mary said, snuggling down next to him on the concrete. "I'm sorry about you, though. You must be cold."

"I'll be fine, just get some sleep," John kissed her hair, twining his arms around her waist. "I love you."

"I love you, too. Good night, John."

"Good night, Mary," he whispered. They both drifted soundly off to sleep.

The next day they both woke up, feeling groggy and tired. John looked down at Mary and smiled. "Sleep well?"

"Yes," Mary said in a weary voice. "What's the plan for today?"

"Well I think we should get supplies and anything else that's really important, then we should have a look around town. After all, this is where Dick lives."

"Sounds good, not that I can think of anything better," Mary said, quietly smiling at him.

"Come on, let's go get some breakfast," John got to his feet and stretched. Sleeping on the floor was definitely not good for his back.

"Do we have the money for that?" Mary asked. "I mean, you hacked into Ra's Al Ghul's accounts, but he's probably plugged up those holes."

"Don't worry, Ra's has plenty of bogus businesses with accounts and I've become quite good at hacking them."

"Let's just hope they don't catch us."

"They won't," he reassured her. "Don't worry."

They made their way into town, enjoying the hustle and bustle of the crowd, easily blending in, and hoping they wouldn't be noticed. The Graysons found an open coffee shop and found a place to sit. They ordered some coffee and John grabbed a newspaper.

"Hey, Mary, do you recognize this kid?" John asked. He handed Mary the Front Page of the _Jump City Times. _"The paper says his name is Jericho. He and a bunch of "honorary Titans," are watching the city while Robin's away."

"Something about that boy _is_ familiar, but I can't place him. What do you think these "Titans" are anyway, some kind of vigilante group?" Mary asked.

"I guess so, kind of like this "Justice League" I've heard about too. I guess Bats and Supes finally met each other. Along with Wonder Woman, Green Lantern, some guy I've never heard of named Martian Manhunter and the Flash. They watch over the world from some place called the Watchtower."

"So much has changed since we died," Mary sighed. "I can't help feeling like we don't belong here."

"Now that's crazy talk. You're thinking too much. You belong here just as much as I do. You start talking like that and it sounds like you have death wish."

"I don't but I—" Mary began.

"Not one more word out of you, Mary. It's no use for you to feel guilty about the fact that we died. It doesn't change anything."

They finished their coffee and doughnuts and paid for their breakfast in cash. They left the building and headed toward a local electronics store. They bought what they needed and left quietly; no one noticed anything unusual because they acted just like anyone else.

The Graysons headed back to the warehouse and quietly began setting up the TV monitors and computers. After three hours they finally gave it a rest.

"Here I thought technology was supposed to make our lives easier, not harder. These manuals are the size of a dictionary," John sighed, sitting down on the concrete floor.

"No kidding, but I'm sure we'll figure it out," Mary reassured him. I've had enough of this for one day. Let's look around the city some more."

They began walking through the city, making their way downtown. John noticed that there was an office complex for a new business in the City.

"Orpheus Industries?" John asked. "They had the guts to operate _here_ in Robin's city?" Mary asked.

"Not a lot of people know that this business is a front for Ra's Al Ghul. I read a file about something they stole recently from WayneTech. Something called Project Sabbat."

"Don't say that so loud, John, we never know who's listening!" Mary said as they turned down an empty alleyway.

"Don't be so paranoid, Mary, it's…" his voice trailed off. There was a man, standing in front of them in a brown uniform with strange triangular designs on his chest. He was wearing a mask and held two bladed Tonfas in his hands.

"Who are you?" John demanded, looking at the man standing in front of them. "Wait…I know who you are, you're Shrike, one of the League's best assassins."

"Of course," Shrike smirked. "I have heard of your resourceful reputation as well, John Grayson. I'm impressed you and your wife made it this far, to Robin's city no less, but your journey ends here, but I'm afraid, without the happy ending you both hope for. This isn't some storybook you know."

"I'd like to think that it is, and this is _our_ story, and you're not part of it!" John removed a Bo Staff from his utility belt and twirled it, assuming an offensive stance.

"Ha!" Shrike said as he blocked John's attack with his bladed Tonfa, striking back arching his weapon to the right as he moved closer to him. Mary ran forward and leapt up, kicking him hard across the face. Shrike staggered back and slashed at her with his other Tonfa, Mary dodged and removed her Kris from its concealed hiding place inside her jacket.

Rushing Shrike, Mary Grayson slashed at him with the knife. The assassin ducked, avoiding the blow aimed for his head. He kicked out, sending Mary flying back against the wall. Shrike leapt over John and smashed his blade into the wall, narrowly missing her hand as Mary moved out of the way.

John executed a reverse kick as his foot collided with the side of Shrike's head. Shrike staggered back and Mary grabbed his arm, trying to disarm him of one of his Tonfas.

Shrike moved quicker than Mary could even blink. He suddenly dropped the Tonfa he was holding and twisted his hand around so that he gripped Mary's wrist. Pressing down painfully, he forced her to release his hand. Gripping her wrist, he twisted her arm around her back and spinning her around, threw her across the empty parking lot and into a stack of crates.

Enraged, John burst forward, slamming his shoulder into Shrike and sending him skidding across the concrete, raising his Bo Staff, he brought it slamming down on Shrike's other Tonfa. Shrike executed a kick to John's stomach, taking the blow Grayson elbowed him hard across the face, Shrike dropped the other Tonfa and pulled out a knife.

Shrike slashed at John, ripping open a thin red line across his chest.

"Gah!" John grunted, kicking out. He missed and Shrike raised the knife above his head, ready to plunge it into John's heart.

Mary groaned, shaking her head and forcing herself to sit up amidst the pile of crates where she had landed. She watched as John fought with Shrike, trying to get to her feet to help him. Dizzy, she fell back down on her back.

Making another attempt to rise, she scrambled to her feet. Mary saw Shrike prepare to drive his knife through her husband's heart. Removing a shuriken from her utility belt, she hurled it at Shrike, the shuriken slammed into the side of Shrike's head, drawing blood and causing him to lose his concentration. Instead of hitting his intended target of John Grayson's heart, the knife blade embedded itself in John's shoulder.

Mary barreled into Shrike like a freight train and punched him as hard as she could; she continued to pummel him, bringing her knee up into his stomach. She brought the back of her fist across Shrike's face. Quickly she leapt up, somersaulting in a high back flip, bringing her booted feet solidly into Shrike's surprised face. The man fell back to the ground and scrambled to his feet.

Mary suddenly remembered the Glock 18 she had taken from the warehouse and pulled it out. She loaded it and fired. The first two shots missed Shrike who flipped back and avoided the shots. The third shot, however connected with Shrike's thigh. Mary fired again and hit his other thigh. Shrike decided he didn't want to give the Graysons any information and began running away from them as fast as he could.

Mary took two steps forward and started to follow when she remembered that John was hurt. She headed back to him and quickly removed some bandages from her utility belt.

"John, you okay?" she asked.

"For the most part, yeah," he replied. He yanked the knife out of his shoulder with a grunt.

Mary wrapping the bandage around his shoulder, "I heard this is adheres as well as closes the wound with an antibacterial adhesive agent…Stops the bleeding cold. This should hold you."

"Thanks. Do you think he'll be back?" John asked.

"Yeah, let's get inside the warehouse, need to get out of the rain and seal this better."

Mary managed to shoot the lock off of the door and they both scrambled inside the warehouse. John fell heavily to the ground. Mary helped him up as best she could.

"John, I need to fix this bandage," Mary said.

"It's fine. I'm just a little tired, that's all," John insisted, swatting her away. He sat up and noticed a large metal crate sitting in the corner of the room.

"What do you think that is?" he asked.

"I don't know, why?" Mary answered.

"Let's take a look at it," John said, "help me up and I can walk."

Mary pulled him to his feet and they made their way over to the box.

"Let's open it," he said.

"John, you're in no shape to lift that lid."

"That's why you're here," John said. "One…two…three!" together they lifted the lid. John grunted from the pain in his shoulder but they managed to take the lid off. The lid hit the floor and they both stared at the box's contents.

"Whoa…" Mary breathed.

"I don't believe it," John said. They had just stumbled on something big, very big. Somebody was planning something big, and what they had found was something that people would kill to possess even a tiny piece of it…

* * *

Ra's Al Ghul sat in a room seething with rage as Merlyn reported the unfortunate and infuriating news that the Graysons had fled the country of Kravia using stolen League of Assassins identities.

"How do you expect me to pardon you for this failure?" Ra's asked, a deadly, murderous look in his eyes.

"I don't know, Master, I will die honorably, if that is your wish," Merlyn said.

"To kill you would be a just punishment, but I need all the men I can get to stop the Graysons. I've already sent out Shrike, he has already fought them in Jump City, wounding John Grayson, which is more than I can say for _you_, Merlyn."

"I will kill them myself, Master, I swear it," Merlyn vowed.

"It seems your incompetence knows no bounds, Shrike is doing a much better job than anything you've accomplished. Very well, I will give you one last chance, but fail me again and you will not leave this place with your head, should I see you again."

"Yes, Master," Merlyn said. He ended the transmission.

The screen in front of Ra's blinked and Slade's image appeared. Ra's looked up at him with a slight sneer on his face.

"What do you want?" he growled.

"Apparently, Ra's, your intelligence is off. The Graysons are very much alive and Robin has left Jump City to go look for them."

"I know that already, Slade. I have sent my best men in Jump City to take care of the Graysons."

"Need I point out to you my previous statement concerning Robin's parents?" Slade asked.

"I know they're alive, Slade, don't cross me, you may be a deadly mercenary but how would you stand up the entire League of Assassins?"

"Do you want to find that out for yourself?" Slade asked challengingly. "I am hardly afraid of you."

"Just kill the Graysons before he can find them, that's all you're good for," Ra's said bitterly. "I'm contemplating killing you myself."

"Now why would you do that? I've done everything you said; _you _should worry more about yourself. I know how you've stayed alive all these years, and I know how to make your life much... shorter."

"As long as I pay you, you'll do what_ I_ say, and I want you to kill the Graysons, besides you know who they are, and ending their lives would be the ultimate revenge against Robin."

"Yes...Robin. He has always stood in my way. Very well, I will keep "working" for you, but keep in mind, Ra's, just because I'm being paid by you doesn't mean I'll forgive you for your "comments" about me."

"This conversation is over," Ra's said. He ended the transmission. He contacted Lady Shiva.

"Shiva, I have an assignment for you," he said. The female assassin bowed before him.

"While you're searching for the Graysons, I want you to keep an eye on Slade. He is becoming more…unpredictable. He has threatened my life, and you know what you must do to any threat to me."

"I must eliminate him," Shiva said. "Shall this be blatant, or subtle?"

"Keep it subtle, I do not want him to suspect that I am watching him. If he fails to kill the Graysons or turns on us, kill him."

"He is a very hard man to kill," Shiva commented. "Making sure he dies and stays dead will be difficult."

"For others, maybe. But not for you. Do this, and you will be rewarded," Ra's smiled.

"Yes, Master," Shiva said. Ra's shut off the screen.

Yes, indeed, Slade had no idea what he was planning, and even if he did, it wouldn't matter, either way; the Flying Graysons were going to die, even if Slade died along with them.

* * *

"Mary, is that what I think it—?" John began; his wife cut him off before he could finish his question.

"I don't believe it, I just don't believe it," Mary agreed, shaking her head. "How could there be so much of it in one place?"

"I don't know, but I don't think any of the good guys mail ordered over a hundred pounds of Kryptonite."

"Who do you think called in this stuff?" Mary had to wonder aloud. She had always told Dick stories of Superman's exploits when he was a child for bedtime stories, she knew that Kryptonite was real, but she'd never seen it for herself, let alone over a hundred pounds of it.

"I don't know, but I think we better take it," John said, patting the box.

"And just _how _are the two of us supposed to move one hundred pounds of Kryptonite without being noticed or breaking our backs?"

"No sweat, honey, that's what the cranes are for," John said, pointing to the crane on the docks.

"But where are we going to put it?"

"In the warehouse where we live right down the street at Pier 41."

"John, you're a genius!" Mary pulled him into a hug.

"Why, thank you, it's about time you noticed," he said with a smug grin on his face. Mary had to resist the urge to grind her teeth again.

"Now stop that and let's get this thing out of here," John said, heading over to the nearest crane. Mary Grayson followed wondering how this would reunite them with their son and if her husband's genius made him lose his head.


	8. Chapter VIII: The One Thing I Have Left

**Chapter VIII: The One Thing I Have Left**

_Two Months Ago..._

Robin sat in the front of the T Ship, thinking about everything that had happened over the last four months. What could Ra's possibly be planning? Why would he resurrect his parents? It wasn't because he wanted Robin to be happy, that was certain, but what would he gain from using his Lazarus Pit on someone else? These questions ran around in circles in his mind. It just didn't make sense.

_Ra's Al Ghul is planning something, and it involves my parents,_ Robin thought. _Ra's has been alive for centuries, he's a brilliant tactician. What's his angle here? What would he want with my parents? Since when has Ra's Al Ghul started going after me, anyway? He's determined to destroy Batman, but—_

Suddenly, the thought occurred to him that the way to strike at Batman was through him. _But how could bringing back his parents possibly be a way to strike at Batman? Unless—_

_Unless Ra's Al Ghul is trying to use them to kill me! But they're—they're my parents—and they love me. They'd never do something like that. Not Dad, and certainly not Mom._

The idea was so repulsive and disgusting and diabolical that it _had _to be the reason Ra's Al Ghul had desecrated his parents' gravestones and why he had taken their bodies. But would Ra's be successful enough to brainwash his parents? Would they actually accept his teachings and become cold-blooded killers like Merlyn and Shiva?

The Lazarus Pit drove the dead insane after they had returned to life. Would his parents believe Ra's Al Ghul in their crazed mental states if he convinced them that Robin was their enemy? Would they follow his every command and willingly die for his cause?

Robin shook his head, he could not, he _would not_ allow himself to believe that Ra's Al Ghul had brainwashed his parents and turned them against him. They were a lot stronger than people gave them credit for. They wouldn't believe Ra's' lies. They had raised him with a strong sense of right and wrong. They wouldn't believe Ra's if he told them that Robin was evil.

He remembered the recurring dream he had about his Mother in Haly Circus. Maybe that was a way for them to communicate. Dreams could have more meaning that being just subconscious thoughts, right? His Mother was telling him that she was okay and that they were both still alive. They lived, he knew it in his heart, and he would find them.

Robin wondered what they would look like now. No doubt they would be older than he remembered. Perhaps they would have strands of white hair like Ra's Al Ghul did. That would be likely considering their skeletons had been immersed in the Lazarus Pit.

The thought of seeing his parents again made Dick Grayson smile. It was something he had always hoped and dreamed of, but had never thought that it would be possible that they would return to him from the grave. He had to track down Ubu and force him to give up his parents' current location. It wouldn't be easy. He was contemplating using a Truth Serum, even though it wasn't exactly an ethical method. Then again, the League of assassins weren't exactly ethical themselves.

What should he do? That was the question that seemed to have an elusive answer. The True Master might be able to tell him the whereabouts of the League of Assassins; she lived near Ra's Al Ghul's Himalayan temple where he sometimes stayed.

"You said we were gonna visit the True Master, right? You said she might be able to help you find your parents," Cyborg said, finishing his calibrations of the T-Ship so they would head straight for the Himalayas.

"Yes," Robin replied. "The True Master might be able to tell me where Ra's Al Ghul is, if I can find Ra's, I can find my parents."

"Dude, why haven't you ever mentioned your parents before? I mean, before all this stuff happened, you never talked about them," Beast Boy asked.

"The subject of my parents was a…painful subject for me before now," Robin replied.

"They died in some kind of accident, right?" Beast Boy asked. "Raven said something about a trapeze."

"Robin, were your parents the Fearless Flying Graysons?" Raven asked.

"How would you know about them?" Robin stared at her. He didn't think she'd known about them. His parents were famous, sure, but mainly among circus performers.

"My mother saw them, a long time ago, before I was born. She said she'd gone with some friends. It was one of the few things that made my mother happy. She was very sad when she heard they died."

"How could your mom know my parents died? You said you were raised in another dimension," Robin asked.

"We have ways of keeping track of what happens on Earth," Raven said. "It's much too complicated for me to explain."

"We better get going," Robin said, "Time's wasting and my parents are in danger."

"Danger? How can they be in danger?" Beast Boy asked. "They died in that accident—"

"It wasn't an accident, Beast Boy," Robin said, giving his green friend a hard look. "I know it because I saw it and I know who did it because he threatened my family that same day."

"I'm sorry, Dude," Beast Boy said apologetically. "I didn't know. It's that why you wear that costume and fight crime and stuff?"

"Their deaths were a strong influence on my decision. I did it because I didn't want anyone else go through what I went through as a kid. Let's go guys, time's a wasting."

Flying out of the Sahara Desert, the Titans flew for a day until they reached the small town where Robin had found the True Master, Chui-Hui. They traveled up the mountain and Robin paid his respects to each of the three Guardians as they passed. Arriving at the dojo, Robin stood at the entrance.

"True Master, are you here?" Robin called out.

The slat in front of the entrance to the dojo opened and Chui-Hui, the True Master stood before him.

"Ah, Young Warrior, what brings you back to my mountain? There is nothing more for me to teach you," she said remorsefully. Robin had been an excellent student, willing and eager to learn from her instruction, unlike so many others who came to her so they could use their newly learned skills to impress their women, not to use to help others or teach themselves self discipline. She wished there were more people like him in the world; at least he had a sense of self purpose and would use her teachings to do protect and serve, not dominate and intimidate.

"I come to you seeking information, True Master, not instruction," Robin said solemnly. "Can my friends come in?"

"Yes," Chui-Hui said, ushering them in. They bowed respectfully and stepped inside and sat down on the floor. "So, Young Warrior, what brings you back to my mountain, what information do you seek?"

"I seek the location of the one they call Ra's Al Ghul," Robin said.

"You seek the one known as the Demon's Head," Chui-Hui said. "He is dangerous, but you know this, I'm sure, or you would not ask me where he is. Why do you wish to find him?"

"It's a personal reason, True Master," Robin said. "Do you believe the dead can be resurrected?"

"I am not sure of what you mean by that, but if you refer to Ra's Al Ghul and how he summons the fires of Hell to lengthen his life, then you could say I believe it for I have heard of the Lazarus Pits."

"I think that Ra's Al Ghul used his Lazarus Pit to revive my parents," Robin said. "And I think he brought them back to life so he could use them to kill me."

"What makes you think that?" Chui-Hui asked.

"All the evidence I know points to it. The desecration of my parents' graves, the disappearance of their bodies. Even the dream I had about my Mother."

"You are close to her?" Chui-Hui asked, curious. This dream Robin spoke of, did not appear to come from a mere fantasy or fragments of his imagination. This was something deeper than any ordinary dream.

"I was very close to her, the last thing she gave me before she died was a uniform, which eventually became my Robin costume, and….I called myself Robin because….she used to call me "Little Robin" when I was a kid."

"Yes, children should cherish their parents," Chui-Hui said thoughtfully. "Your dream may be a way of communication, if you are as close to her as you say then she may be trying to speak to you in these dreams."

"That's what I thought," Robin said quietly. "It seemed that she was telling me that she and Dad were okay, that they were alive and that she was thinking about me."

"I think you are correct for thinking so," Chui-Hui said, smiling.

"True Master, do you know where I might find Ra's Al Ghul. I need answers and only he can give them to me."

"You think that he resurrected your parents, because of this, you should not rush into face him so quickly, he is very dangerous," Chui-Hui said sternly.

"But he wishes for my parents to kill me! I have to find them so I can save them!" Robin said exasperated.

"If parents truly love their children, they will not harm them," Chui-Hui said calmly. "If they are with Ra's Al Ghul you will only endanger them with your presence. You should stay away from them for now. You will only jeopardize their safety."

"But what I supposed to do, just sit here?!" Robin asked, half screaming at his teacher.

"You should stay here, Young Warrior," Chui-Hui said calmly.

"There is nothing more you can teach me, I have learned all there is to know about the martial arts from you!" Robin said, he was starting to become angry and she noticed this.

"Calm yourself, Young Warrior!" Chui-Hui said severely. Robin looked down at the floor.

"I'm sorry, True Master," Robin said apologetically. "I'm just frustrated, that's all."

"It is understandable," Chui-Hui said softly. "You want your parents to be safe. You must be patient. That is the only thing you can do now."

"Okay, I'll wait here," Robin sighed, resigned to the fact that circumstances were beyond his control. There was nothing he could do about it. He'd just have to wait.

"I want you to know that if I should ever meet your parents, I will help them if I can," Chui-Hui said quietly.

"Thank you, Chui-Hui," Robin looked out at the sunset and wondered how long he'd have to wait before he saw his parents again.

* * *

_Back in the Present..._

"Hello, there," Mary Grayson greeted a blond-haired girl as she stood on the edge of the water of the Jump City Bay. Mary frowned at the girl's appearance as she glared at a strange T-shaped building. She wondered why the girl seemed so angry.

"What do you want?" the blond girl snapped, whirling around to glare at her.

"Sorry, just making conversation," Mary said; children had no manners these days. At least she'd taught Dick how to talk to adults without being rude.

"I'll get him," the girl said, seething. "One day he will be mine!"

"Who?" Mary asked, was this girl delusional or something? She wasn't making sense at all. What was she talking about?

"Oh, just the handsomest boy in the whole wide world, my Robbie-poo!" she exclaimed dreamily.

Mary stared at her, "What the—what the heck are you talking about? And who is this Robbie-poo?"

"Are you_ COMPLETELY_ dense? You've never heard of Robin the Boy Wonder?!" Kitten exclaimed rudely. Mary was offended that she dared to call her precious son _Robbie-poo_, which was an insult at best.

"_Are_ you his girlfriend?" Mary asked. _Please say "no", I'd much prefer to not have you anywhere near me._

"Not yet, but I will be," the girl said evilly. "I will be."

"How come you aren't his girlfriend now? And who are you?" Mary asked.

"I'm Kitten, and soon everyone will know me as Robin's wonderful girlfriend!" Kitten said grandly. "If it weren't for that alien girl Starfire, he'd be _MY _boyfriend!"

_I wonder how bad your delusions of grandeur are, _Mary thought. "Wonderful" was not the word to describe this girl. The word "Parasite" was a much better description of her.

_I honestly don't think my son would come near you with a 10 foot pole, _Mary thought.

"So what happened to this Starfire girl?" Mary asked.

"Robbie-poo dumped me at MY junior prom to be with her! It's not fair! And he asked me to the prom!" Kitten screamed as if Mary wasn't there. She could only conclude one thing: this girl was completely crazy. There was no way Robin would willingly take this girl to the prom. If Kitten annoyed Mary as much as she did right now, she only had to wonder what made her son take this fruitcake to prom.

"He _asked _you to prom?!" Mary asked; her son must have been on something in order to go anywhere with this girl.

"Well, Daddy made him ask me to prom, or he'd destroy the city," Kitten said nonchalantly, as if it were nothing. Mary controlled her emotions very well and did not betray her disgust.

She'd blackmailed him into a prom date. This girl was definitely on her "Most Irritating People" list. "Tell me, Kitten, you said Robin dumped you, right?"

"Yes!" Kitten shrieked. "He dumped me for that beautiful red-headed alien girl. She may be pretty, but I am much _prettier _than her!"

_Oh, will you shut up?! _Her mind screamed as Mary tried her best, not very successfully, to conceal her annoyance. _This girl Starfire sounds _much _better than you._

"I see. Did it ever occur to you, Missy that if, however _unlikely, _you ever became Robin's girlfriend that you'd have to meet his parents?" Mary asked slowly.

"Oh, I never thought about that before," Kitten said, she quickly recovered. "Well, I'm sure they'd _love _my charming personality."

"I don't think they'd like you," Mary said simply. She wanted to keep this Kitten girl way from Robin if she could help it.

"Oh really?" Kitten asked, unnerved by the statement. "What would you know anyway?"

"Oh believe me Kitten, I know. And they wouldn't like you," Mary said, turning she walked away. "Oh, by the way, what is that big T-shaped thing in the middle of the island out in the bay?"

"That's Titans Tower, that's where my dearest love lives," Kitten sighed dreamily.

Mary walked over to John who was standing a little further off.

"So did you find out anything from that irritating girl in the prom dress?" John asked.

"Yeah, she blackmailed my baby into a date," Mary hissed in John's ear. Kitten had stomped off but she still kept her voice low enough so that no one except John could hear.

John stared, shocked. "She really did that? I'm surprised you didn't drop kick her into the next time zone."

"All in due time, John," Mary smiled slyly, "all in due time."

"Any word on his eminent return?" John asked.

"No, he's still gone, as far as I know," Mary said, locking her fingers together. "Hopefully, he'll come back soon."

"He can't be gone forever," John said. "Don't worry about him."

"Who said I was worried?" Mary laughed. "C'mon, let's get something to eat."

They walked inside the coffee shop and sat down in a booth. John grabbed a menu and looked at it. "Hmm…see anything that looks good?" John asked.

"Bacon and eggs look good," Mary said. They both ordered the same thing and ate breakfast quietly. They were quite ordinary and no one suspected that they had been dead for seven years. They were blending into the city quite nicely. They lived in the warehouse and that had been going pretty well.

Eating, they quietly discussed what they should do next. They had set cameras all across the city so they could keep an eye on things and make sure that the League of Assassins weren't getting too close to their location, if they came close the Graysons would relocate to the abandoned circus on the West Side of town.

After they were done eating, they went out and walked the park, just enjoying the fresh air and the outdoors.

"Ah, fresh air," John sighed. "Just what I needed."

"Yes, it is nice, isn't it?" Mary said, smiling. 'It's been a long time since we've gotten to go out...without worrying about someone trying to kill us."

"I wouldn't say that just yet, we're still not safe, even in his city where he lives," John warned. "We're not safe until Ra's Al Ghul calls off his Teeth and they stop trying to kill us."

"What are the odds of that happening?" Mary asked.

"Highly unlikely," Jon replied. "We have to lay low and play it safe. That's the only thing we can do."

"Staying safe won't help us find Dick, you know that. We have to go out there and start looking for him, we can't just sit around and wait for him to find us," Mary said, irritation filling her voice.

"Mary, it isn't like he's lost and we need to go look for him, we need to stay safe and not do anything rash. Those assassins are still out there—"

"I don't care; I want to go find Dick!" Mary snapped angrily.

"Mary I don't want you to go out anywhere by yourself, it's not safe," John protested, equally angry.

"Why do you treat me like I'm defenseless?" Mary asked. "I'm not some damsel in distress you need to rescue."

"I'm not treating you like that," John replied, "It's just I want you to be safe."

"I _am _safe, John I can take care of myself," Mary snapped, storming away in a huff. John reached out to grab her shoulder but she yanked herself away from him.

"Mary, wait!" John called.

"Just leave me alone, John!" Mary growled furiously. She walked away leaving him behind. John sighed frustrated, there was no persuading her. He hoped she wouldn't get into trouble.

Grumbling angrily, Mary made her way across town.

"He just doesn't understand, "Mary grumbled. "We can't just sit around and wait for him to come home. We have to go out and search for him."

Going around a corner, Mary Grayson didn't notice a shadowy figure following her. Slade smiled.

"Well, well, she's all alone," Slade said to himself. "I fully intend to enjoy this." He decided to trail Robin's mother, oh, revenge would be sweet indeed.

Mary walked out of the burger place without a word, she didn't feel hungry anyway. If she would have stayed inside five more minutes she would have seen a special news report detailing the Teen Titans' return to Jump City. She would have seen her son's face on the screen and would have headed straight to Titans Tower, but she didn't see it, and not seeing it could prove to be fatal for her, she had no idea what would take place that same night her son came back to his city.

"Hello, Mary," a much hated voice sneered from the darkness. Mary didn't need to see him to know who he was. "Remember me?"

"Slade!" Mary exclaimed; her anger overcame her fear of him. She wasn't about to let him kill her. No doubt Ra's Al Ghul had sent him to dispatch her and John. Ra's wasn't exactly interested in reuniting the Grayson family; after all, he had revived them so they would kill their son, no so they could have a happy family reunion.

"Ah, so you haven't forgotten me, I'm flattered," Slade sneered. "I'm looking forward to finishing what we started in Ra's Al Ghul's Himalayan Temple, and this time your husband can't save you from what I'm going to do to you."

"You lay a hand on me, and I'll make you pay!" Mary snarled. She never knew she could hate someone so much she would actually say that to someone. But Slade was a lot like Tony Zucco and she hated him.

Mary rushed Slade, swinging at him as he ducked easily dodging the blow. He smiled beneath his mask. This was going to be fun.

Mary Grayson barely had time to grab the kris out from beneath her coat as Slade struck at her, aiming for her head. She back-flipped away from him and brought the kris up, slashing at him, trying to defend herself.

Slade grabbed her arm and twisted it painfully, screaming, Mary punched him in the face with her other hand as she brought her booted foot up into his back as hard as she could, bringing her knee up to strike his back.

Slade was startled at her ferocity. She had received more training. He had to wonder who had given her more training. She wasn't hesitant and frightened of him like she was during their first encounter. She was methodical, focused and ready for him. Mary had successfully cut a small gash across Slade's chest as he cried out in surprise.

"You thought I'd be scared again, didn't you?" Mary smirked. "Not this time, Slade, this time I'll win."

"You don't get it, do you Grayson?" Slade asked. "This isn't about _winning_; this is about your_ life_. I won't hesitate to kill you where you stand."

"I don't doubt that," Mary replied. "That's why I have a backup plan."

Mary quickly removed a small explosive from her utility belt and placed it on top of Slade's mask, leaping away; she heard it go off as bright flame erupted from the device. Landing on her feet, Mary prepared to attack.

"You're going to pay for that!" Slade snarled.

Mary noted that Slade's mask was cracked on the right side, jagged lines made a zigzag like pattern down the side of the mask that showed his eye. It looked as if it might break. He rushed her, grabbing Mary's wrist as he elbowed her in the face. Slade kicked her as hard as he could in the stomach. Mary hit the pavement hard. Jumping up, she flipped backwards, avoiding another blow.

"Now Mary is that the best you can do?" he taunted.

An enraged cry erupted from her as Mary Grayson punched and kicked him, slamming her elbow into the side of his masked head. Slade took the blow and head-butted her in the face, sending her stumbling backwards. Mary fell down but managed to bring her foot up into Slade's stomach. He stepped back and pulled out a gun. He fired, but she managed to roll out of the way as the blast left a burnt hole in the asphalt.

Mary Grayson heard the gun fire. She expected to feel her life ebb away from her as the laser pierced a vital organ. Instead, she stared down at her left hand. All she could see was blood. Her own blood. Slade had shot off two of her fingers.

Mary tried to get to her feet, but slipped and fell in her own blood. She glared up at her hated enemy. To her surprise Slade began to laugh.

"Oh," he chortled in a sarcastic tone of voice. "I'd know that look anywhere. Your dear _Little Robin _gave me that same look when I "persuaded" him to serve me and become my apprentice."

"My son would never _ever _work for you!" Mary screamed; her voice filled with both rage and pain. Slade was lying. He had to be lying. Dick would never work for someone who was so evil. It was like saying that John would go work for Tony Zucco. She couldn't and wouldn't accept it.

"You'd be surprised at what a death threat can do to persuade a person," Slade said nonchalantly.

"Robin's not afraid to die!" Mary said defiantly. She'd taught her son to be brave even in the face of danger. She had always told him death wasn't something to be afraid of.

"Oh I didn't threaten _him_, I know he's not afraid of death, but he cares about his worthless_ friends_. I placed nanoscopic probes inside all of them and with a push of a button, just like that; they'd die a horrible, slow, painful death. Oh yes, your precious son fought me all along the way, but when he tried to tell his "friends" what was happening I pushed the button and he had to watch someone very dear to him, the one he_ loved_ suffer. I made him fight his friends to save them. Such a pity it didn't work out, he would have been very useful to me."

"You're going to pay for everything you've ever done to my son!" Mary growled, rage filling her voice.

Slade laughed again. "Do you think I'm joking, you think this is some kind of game? I'm going to kill you but I'm also going to finish you off nice and slow."

"No, Slade, I'd never think that," a voice said behind him. Slade turned and saw much to his irritation that John Grayson stood in the alleyway with a crowbar in his hand.

"Now how'd you mange to track me down?" Slade asked sarcastically.

"I have my ways, Slade, and _nobody _hurts my wife and gets away with it," John brandished the crowbar. "I'll make you pay!"

Slade smirked beneath his mask; this man was even stupider than he thought. He would have no trouble dispatching him and then he would have his sweet revenge on Mary, committing unthinkable acts on her and then he would kill her and leave her ravaged body in the entryway to Titans Tower for her son to find.

John wasn't stupid when it came to Slade, Chui-Hui the True Master had taught him during his training that he wasn't skilled enough to take on someone like Slade and survive. He protested, recounting his experiences in his previous battle with the evil mastermind. Chui-Hui said that Slade had purposely lost the battle in order to test him and make him overconfident. John had begrudgingly acknowledged this and had requested more training. The True Master herself had told him that he would need more knowledge in martial arts and had taught him enough to be able to defeat the one-eyed mercenary. John assumed an offensive stance and hoped that he would be able to stop Slade and save Mary.

She may not have been a damsel in distress but she still needed him. He was her protector. That's what husbands did for their wives. They took care of them, provided for them and protected them.

Even though they had both been given the same training by the True Master, Slade was much stronger than Mary, despite her martial arts prowess; she couldn't take him down by herself. John had done some research on the Robin/Slade rivalry and found out that even Robin hadn't stopped Slade by himself, but had help from his friends to stop him. John was ready for a fight, he couldn't lose Mary. She was the one thing he had left. She was everything to him. Dick was also very dear to him, but without her he wouldn't have had a son. His whole life revolved around her.

She was what kept him going and without her, he would be lost and unsure of himself. Slade could kill him, but that didn't matter, if he lost her he would be devastated. She gave him confidence and strength, and he needed both right now if he was to protect her. He also hoped that the S.O.S. he had sent to Titans Tower right before he had made himself known to Slade would be heard.


	9. Chapter IX: Kryptonite

**Chapter IX: Kryptonite**

_One Month Ago…_

Dick Grayson sat inside Chui-Hui's dojo typing commands into his laptop computer. He and Cyborg were searching for any known whereabouts of the League of Assassins. They were immensely difficult to track, even for Robin, he had heard that they were in the Himalayas, but he hadn't been able to find any confirmation of there actually being people inside the temple. He'd heard rumors of course, but he hadn't actually gone anywhere near the location.

Ra's Al Ghul wasn't the only one who lived in the Himalayas though, and that was why Robin was hesitant to scout out the temple a few miles away, being unsure if it was where Ra's was. There were many temples in those mountains, and although he was suspicious of a temple was rumored to be used by the Demon's Head, but he didn't know for sure. Uncertainty was not a good thing. He had to be 100 percent sure that the League of Assassins was using the temple near the True Master's mountain, but to go himself would be dangerous and foolhardy. The True Master said he would only make matters worse for his parents if they were still with the League of Assassins, but how was he to know that they were still there? Every connection to the League that he had confronted had said nothing about Ra's asking them to train anyone.

"Hey Cyborg, can I borrow one of your arms for a little while?" he asked. The robotic Titan stared at him like he had asked him if he could flap his wings and fly away. Robin had never thought that a mechanical eye could twitch but Cyborg's red eye looked as if it were about to break.

"Uh, did you just ask me if you could borrow my arm? What for?" he asked.

"I need the camera that you have inside your robotic fingers to use to scout out the area," Robin said. "Do you have an extra arm I could use instead?"

"Sure, but it just seems kinda weird that's all," Cyborg said, he walked over to a suitcase that held his extra robotic parts, just in case he needed to replace them. He handed Robin the arm and a laptop.

"Here," he said. "The laptop is to control the arm. You can see any visuals it picks up on the screen."

"Thanks Cyborg," Robin replied. "I really appreciate this."

"You said you were going to use my camera arm for surveillance, why?" Cyborg asked.

"It's a way for me to search for the League of Assassins," Robin replied. "I won't put myself in danger and still find them."

"Okay, but you better not damage my arm, it's not easy for me to construct that, and I only have a few of those," Cyborg said.

"Okay," Robin began typing in commands, causing Cyborg's hand to go "walking" off on its fingers. "We are in business!" The hand kept walking straight out the dojo. Robin expertly navigated the hand down the mountain.

"Now, to find that temple," Robin muttered, he watched the camera as he saw nothing but snow.

Robin watched the screen for hours as he began the tedious task of locating Ra's' temple. After about six hours, he spotted the building on the computer screen.

"Found you, Ra's," Robin said with a victorious gleam in his masked eyes. He began to carefully navigate the robotic hand up the Mountain, avoiding detection by the guards as he infiltrated the building.

"Well this is interesting, let's see whose inside," Robin navigated the halls of the temple. "Come on," Robin muttered, there's gotta be something inside this place. It looks way too clean to be abandoned." Robin commanded the device to make its way around the corner. Much to his surprise he spotted two people who were standing inside a large training room.

"John?" a voiced asked, "are you okay? You seem distracted." Robin's heart leapt into his throat. He knew that voice, that beautiful, wonderful voice that he had missed for so long. The voice that haunted his dreams and nightmares, _her _voice, his mother's voice, he had found them!

"Mom?" Robin barely whispered, as if he were standing there in that room with her. He was afraid that she might hear him, but then he remembered that he wasn't even there with them, he was just on the other end of a camera.

"I am distracted," John's voice echoed through the room, "by you."

Robin smiled. His father hadn't changed one bit, he always liked to flirt with mom in public, much to her embarrassment, he had never understood why until he started dating Starfire. Not that he flirted with her in public like his father blatantly did with his mother, but he understood where it came from.

Robin saw his mother walk over to his father and he pulled her into an embrace. He couldn't help but smile, it was just like the old days back at Haly Circus; it was almost the same except that they were all older. He noted that their hair was streaked with white, so the Lazarus Pit theory was definitely true. Ra's had resurrected them.

"Flattery will get you nowhere with me," Mary said, looking him straight in the face as Robin watched them through the camera lens. He always knew when they flirted; it was something he had seen ever since he learned what the term meant when he was younger. He could see the gleam in his mother's eyes and knew that she was teasing dad, just like old times.

"I can't slip anything past you can I?" John asked, chuckling softly. Robin watched his parents kiss; a small smile crept across his face. He never thought he'd see them do that again.

"Okay," Robin muttered, "this is awkward…"

He watched as his parents' parted and Mary rested her head on his father's shoulder. Robin heard a sigh and watched his mother look up at his father.

"You're thinking about Dick again, aren't you?" John asked; a slight hint of amusement in his voice.

_Dick._ She had called him "Dick". He hadn't gone by that name in years and now it seemed strange to hear her say it. Dick Grayson stared at the screen, wondering what he should do, he was trying to decide if he should go to them or not. The True Master _had _said he would endanger them if he went to where they were, but that didn't mean he couldn't use unconventional means to search for them.

As much as he wanted to go to them, he knew the True Master was right in saying that he should avoid them for the time being. It would only be worse if he showed up and fought against the League of Assassins. He could only watch them through the camera. Unfortunately, things were taking a turn for the worse.

"Mary, we have to go, Slade is expecting us," John said quietly.

"I don't trust Slade," Mary said firmly. Robin was relieved; at least his mother was smart enough to know that something wasn't right about the League of Assassins. "I know you're not blind John, you've seen the way he looks at me…"

"I've noticed, and I don't like it, but…I trust him," John said, as if he didn't want to say it.

Robin thought he could have a heart attack then and there_. SLADE?! What is Slade doing to_ my _parents?! How could he even have the_ _audacity to even speak to them! What are they thinking?!_ Then the realization hit him, his parents had never even heard of Slade. They didn't know he was a supervillain and criminal mastermind.

"John, you're a man, you should know how men think, when I said "he's looking at me" that in itself should send up red flags in your brain shouldn't it?"

"It does, and I know you're right. Stay close to me, I'll protect you. I promise."

"Thanks John that's sweet," Mary said hugging him again. "After all this is over, I want to go look for Dick."

"I know you do, but I don't think it's time to go yet, Ra's said our training isn't finished."

"That's true, but…there's something about him, something I don't like."

"Now you're being paranoid," John said, crossing his arms.

"Ra's has been kind to us, too kind, I think, something's going on here, something they're not telling us…"

Robin heard a door open and whipped the camera around to see who had walked in. At first, he didn't recognize the man who had entered, until he saw the body armor and the eye patch. Robin gasped in shock. It was Slade, without a mask.

For so long, Robin had been fighting a faceless monster that had threatened to kill his friends and manipulated a young girl into betraying them. He had died and been resurrected by Trigon and had nearly destroyed the world in order to regain his flesh and blood. _This _is what he was doing all this time; he had been training his own parents to kill him. He also deduced that Ra's Al Ghul was the one behind the escape of all the inmates from Jump City's Maximum Security Prison. That had occurred shortly after he had discovered that his parents' graves were desecrated in Gotham City. That had been a ruse so he wouldn't search for his parents.

Robin couldn't take his eyes off the screen. There was his worst enemy, his greatest adversary, training his parents in the art of combat. The idea terrified him that he would have to battle his parents after they had been taught martial arts by the man he hated. He knew that if Slade completed their training and if his parents followed the ideals of the League of Assassins, he might not survive fighting both his parents and Slade, he only hoped they would get out of Ra's' Himalayan temple and survive, and from what he had heard of the conversation mom was ready to go.

His mother had always been better at reading people than his father. John tended to think that everyone was good; unfortunately, Tony Zucco wasn't one of those "good" people.

His mother was the thinker of the family and on June 27th, on the night they died, his mother had been strangely contemplative after they had posed for a picture with Jack, Janet, and Tim Drake who had come to circus.

His mother had wondered if she had deprived her son of a normal life and had even asked him if he wanted to settle down and go to school like other children, he had said "no" and then she never said anything more about it.

Robin watched as Slade began sparring with each of his parents. First up was his mother, he noted that his mother had a fighting style that was similar to his and that she was doing her best to defend herself from Slade's attacks while trying to counter them with her own.

Slade intercepted one of her blows and threw her across the room. Scrambling to her feet, she leapt straight at him. Slade swung at her, landing a firm blow to the stomach with his knocking the wind out of Mary Grayson.

"Still not good enough, Mary, you don't have what it takes to kill," Slade said as Robin watched his mother hit her knees. She was breathing hard and trying to get to her feet.

"I don't want to kill people," Mary grunted.

"It doesn't matter, if you want to win, you have to be the one who does whatever it takes to win," Slade suddenly, and viciously kicked her in the face. Robin had a sinking feeling that Slade knew his secret identity as Dick Grayson and was doing this to spite him even though, technically, he wasn't there.

"It's not necessary to kick my wife in the face, Sensei," John said in an angry voice. Robin saw his father step forward.

"I apologize," Slade said in a way that didn't sound at all sorry. "Fine, your wife can rest, it's your turn to fight me."

John stepped forward and they began fighting. Dick noted his father relied on his physical strength and size to give him an advantage, and he did have some advantage, but Dick knew that strength and size did not matter when it came to Slade, he knew that from personal experience that Slade could overpower someone who was much bigger and stronger than he was due to his martial arts prowess.

Dick watched as John Grayson struck at Slade, the man avoided the blow and kicked him in the midsection. Slade's fist barely missed John's face as he dodged the punch.

"If you want to defeat your opponent, you have to be ruthless, viscous. It is the only way you will slaughter your enemy."

"I'm not a killer, Slade," John said. "That's not who I am."

"If you want to be the best there is, you have to be willing to do whatever it takes," Slade said strongly. Robin stared in horror, he was watching them become killing machines and there was nothing he could do about it. He felt the urge to up and leave to go to his parents then and there, but he just couldn't stop watching what was unfolding before him on the screen.

Robin watched as Slade kicked his father across the room. John Grayson flipped back and landed on his feet. Slade elbowed him across the face as John brought his knee into Slade's stomach.

Slade grasped John's arm and twisted it around his back as he slammed him onto the ground.

"I have much to teach you, John. This session is over, you may leave," Slade said. The coldness in his voice disturbed him. Robin watched his father walk out of the room. Why wasn't his mother following him? She seemed to be staring blankly at the wall. Robin realized that she was thinking.

"Is something wrong?" he asked. Slade placed a hand on her shoulder. The action enraged Dick. He had no right to touch his mother.

"Get your hands off my mother!" Dick said, barely managing to keep his voice above a whisper. He couldn't believe Slade dared touch his mother. He didn't have to right to be anywhere near her.

He felt fear welling up inside of him. "Mom, get out of there!"

"No, I'm just…thinking about my boy, again. I've been thinking about him a lot these days." Dick was touched that she was thinking about him. He just hoped that it wouldn't get her killed.

"You didn't tell me you had a son, what is his name?" Slade asked. Robin had no doubt his arch foe knew his secret identity, how else would he be able to make him his apprentice and keep Batman away? He had discovered his alter ego of Dick Grayson and that was the only logical explanation there was.

"His name is…" Mary began. Dick held his breath.

_Don't tell him anything mom, _Robin's mind screamed as he stared at the screen. As if she could hear his thoughts, she suddenly stiffened, pulled herself away from him and said, "I don't see how my personal life is your business."

"What's the matter, Mary, don't you trust me?" Slade asked. Robin was horrified. He recognized that tone of voice. It was that manipulative, insinuating voice he had heard Slade use when he had threatened to kill all his friends if he didn't follow his orders. Robin could feel the sweat dripping off his face.

"Please mom, get out of there," he pleaded with her. She wasn't safe if Slade was there, she wasn't safe anywhere at the moment staying with the League of Assassins.

"A pity. The one you have treats you like a possession, not a person," Slade said.

Robin knew every word he said was a lie. Slade didn't know anything about John Grayson. His father did not treat his mother like a "possession"; his father was completely loyal to his mother. He adored her and loved her more than anything. Loyalty kept them together, not obsession.

"You can't seduce me, Sensei. It goes against everything you and I stand for," Robin knew that his mother believed that Slade was a good man. Now here was when the wolf would take off his sheep's clothing. Now she would see him for the monster he really was. Robin was praying that she would get out of this situation alive.

"You have no idea what I stand for, Mary Grayson, and to be quite frank, you don't have any choice in this matter."

Robin watched as his hated enemy suddenly grabbed his mother's wrists and used his inhuman strength to try to pin her up against the wall.

"Let go!" she screamed, "Leave me alone!"

Robin watched as his mother kicked Slade away from her. Robin watched as Slade grabbed his mother by her arm and threw her across the room. Mary Grayson fought as hard as she could but Dick knew that there was no way she could defeat Slade by herself, she didn't have enough training. Not nearly enough to escape from him and live to tell about it. He was also horrified by what Slade intended to do to his mother, to train her to kill him was bad enough, but to violate her when she refused to betray him was quite personal. He was about ready to jump up and run out of there to go after her when he saw Slade grab her wrists and bent both back painfully, her counter attack was to kick Slade in the crotch.

He'd never seen anyone pull off that before and he was just as surprised as Slade was as he could see his foe's reaction on the screen.

Slade became enraged and drove his foot into her stomach. Striking her across the face, Slade moved to pin her down. She managed to grab his hands and push him away.

"Keep your filthy hands away from me!"

Robin saw the door open and watched his father enter the room, it only took him two seconds to realize what was happening and leap at Slade in rage. Angrily, John rained down blow after blow, kicking and head-butting with everything he had. Robin knew his father was fighting in a frenzied rage and that Slade was letting him win. He deduced that his parents' both had the same training and knew that the only way John could beat Slade was if Slade let him win.

Robin saw Slade crash to the ground. No doubt he was amused by all this.

"Stay away from my wife!" John seethed, spitting venom with every word.

"What is going on here?" Ra's asked. Well here came the puppet master himself. Now Robin would discover the truth behind all this.

"Only a minor problem, it is nothing," Slade lied. Robin knew without at doubt they had to be in cahoots with each other and that they were working together.

"Don't lie to me; I know what you tried to do to her. I watched it all on the cameras. I will not tolerate such actions. You have disgraced yourself. I requested you train them, not to seduce another man's wife! For this, I am sending you away!"

"Mary, John, you both may leave; I will deal with this matter myself," Ra's turned to the Flying Graysons, they left the room, but not before John passed by Slade.

If you _ever_ touch my wife again, you'll be sorry!" John threatened. Robin could see the smirk on Slade's face as John left the room.

"I must say, Ra's," Slade commented. "Even _I_ would have never thought to seduce Robin's birth mother. I must admit, upon seeing her up close, it crossed my mind, she _is_ very beautiful."

"That's why I requested you…play the role, as it were. I do believe she thinks all that was your idea. Your performance has been adequate. This incident will only strengthen their loyalty to me. Besides, I have no doubt you will use this to your advantage."

Robin felt sick. They were all playing games with his parents and the game wouldn't end until he and his family were dead.

"I will make good use of it. But now I'll ask you for my payment. After all, I can't stay. She believes you are sending me away. And her husband, Robin's real "Father" is as ignorant as he is stupid. Hard to believe he spawned that boy." Slade thought that John Grayson was a joke, that there was no way he could be Robin's father. He thought that the man was pathetic and that Batman was the one who was truly Robin's father, considering the fact that Bruce had played a more prominent role in his life, even though John Grayson had raised Dick for 12 years.

"Do not underestimate John Grayson. He is hardly stupid. He has used his newfound skills to protect his precious wife from your…unwanted attention," Ra's said. Robin was surprised that the man respected his birth father. He had expected him to be more like Slade and disregard John Grayson completely.

"Ha. The only reason he "defeated" me is because I let him," Slade sneered. "He is nothing. Robin's mentor, "The Detective" as you call him is far more intelligent than this John Grayson."

"You assume too much, the father whom you called "ignorant and stupid" single handedly fought off the thugs who eventually killed him and his wife. And that was long _before_ I trained either of them."

Robin felt proud that his father had been able to save his mother, although he was also worried, if Ra's had known about how his father had fought to protect his family he knew that the terrorist would send his best men to try to kill them. He hoped they would be able to survive long enough to escape the League and stay safe until he could find them.

"I see. I will keep that in mind. Now about my payment," Slade said, holding out his hand. Ra's slapped a check into his hand.

All his suspicions were confirmed, Ra's Al Ghul wanted him dead, and his parents and Slade were going to do his dirty work for him. He watched as Slade left and as Ra's began laughing, so pleased that his plan was working. He watched Ra's leave the room and hit the self destruct button, causing the robotic arm to malfunction and explode. No one heard it fortunately and he waited until the screen fizzled out.

He walked over to Starfire where she was sleeping. It was night time and he didn't have any time to waste.

"Robin? What is going on?" Starfire asked sleepily.

"I don't have time to explain, but we have to go now!"

"What is wrong? Why must we leave?" she asked, concerned.

"My parents are in danger, we have to go to them, I have to save them!" Robin said strongly.

"But Chui-Hui said that you should stay here-" Starfire protested.

"No, waiting around will get them killed, get Beast Boy, Raven and Cyborg up, there's no time to lose."

"Why wake us up at eleven at night, dude? It's time for sleep," Beast Boy grumbled in a sleepy voice.

"It's an emergency," Robin snapped, "Come on, let's go," Robin put on his utility belt and put on his cape.

They headed out down the mountain and into the cold.

"How do you even know they're actually there, man?" Cyborg asked, irritated just as much as the rest of the Titans at being woken up out of a sound sleep.

"I _saw _them, they're there, I know, and Slade's there too, which is why we have to go now," Robin said.

"Slade?!" the other Titans shouted, shocked.

"Slade has been training my parents in martial arts so they can kill me," Robin said evenly.

They moved as quickly as they could, flying down the mountain, Robin remembered where Ra's Al Ghul's temple was and they made their way toward it.

"Dude…." Beast Boy breathed in shock. Robin stared up as he saw the temple in flames, something had happened.

"What happened?" Cyborg asked, all the carnage he saw startled him. Who could possibly do this to a building and come out alive?

"I think my parents tried to get away," Robin said.

"How do you know it was them?" Beast Boy asked.

"I know how they think, if Dad found out the truth he would try to escape, if they were dead, I'd feel it, and I know they aren't. I think Raven can sense it, she's connected to me, she's been inside my head."

"He's right, I can sense them, their emotions, they're trying to get away from here," Raven said.

"Are they nearby?" Robin asked.

"No, they're gone," Raven replied.

"Wait!" Starfire said, "I see someone!"

The Titans ran toward a fallen figure, Robin recognized him immediately. It was Ubu, Ra's Al Ghul's right hand man. He thought that perhaps Ubu had left the mountain with Ra's but maybe he had decided to search for his parents to kill them, that was the only logical explanation for him still being there.

"Ubu!" Robin shouted. "Where are my parents?"

"You'll get nothing from me, boy!" Ubu shouted. "Now you shall die!"

Ubu unsheathed a sword and Robin removed two Bird-a-Rangs and slammed them together, transforming them into a sword. Blades met and sparks flew as they began dueling on the mountainside.

Ubu, enraged that his master's plans had failed, lunged at Robin, swinging his sword, he struck at his enemy trying to cut him in half.

Robin swung his sword at Ubu, wielding it like a baseball bat, he swung the blade from left to right, matching Ubu's thrusts with his own parries and counterattacks. Robin slammed the side of his shoulder into Ubu and sent the large man tumbling down into the snow. The lethal assassin slashed at Robin even from his place on the ground.

Ubu scrambled to his feet and charged forward, he swung at Robin but he just avoided the blow by twisting away. He brought his sword up and blocked another blow.

Ubu just kept swinging and Robin kept blocking, Ubu got lucky and his blade tore into Robin's shoulder, superficially wounding him. He grunted, ignoring the pain and jumped up, avoiding a blow aimed at his feet and kicked the sword out of Ubu's hand.

The Titans stood by, Cyborg and Starfire were prepared to blast the assassin if he tried to harm their leader. Ubu noticed this and knew there was no running away from the Prodigy this time and there was no way he could kill the boy here with all his friends prepared to attack him.

"Ubu, I want answers, where is your master Ra's Al Ghul, and where are my parents?" Robin demanded, grabbing Ubu by the shirt. The man just smirked at him.

"I refuse to tell you anything!" Ubu declared, "Do your worst, once my master destroys everything you hold dear, it won't matter what happens to me."

"'Everything I hold dear' huh? Guess that must mean my parents are alive again, and that they didn't do whatever your boss wanted them to, Ra's must be pretty ticked, using his Lazarus Pits on someone else and all." Robin said in a mocking tone. He decided the best way to pry information out of Ubu was to get him angry, and by the expression on the man's face, it was apparently working.

"You will not insult the Master, pathetic child, once we find them, we will make sure all you Graysons will pay! Especially that pretty mother of yours, and your father, he had to meddle in our affairs and blow this place up!" Ubu, realizing he had said too much, promptly shut his mouth.

Robin grabbed the man by his shirt and hulled him to his feet. "Nobody threatens my mother, or my father. Tell me, Ubu, WHERE ARE THEY?!" Robin screamed at the fanatical eco-terrorist, rage burning in his eyes.

"You'll have to kill me, I won't tell you anything more," Ubu sneered.

Robin decided he had had enough of trying to interrogate the information of his parents' whereabouts out of Ubu and settled for punching him in the face, knocking him unconscious.

"Let's get him down the mountains and to the proper authorities, the sooner we get out of here, the better," he cuffed Ubu's hands behind his back.

They hauled Ubu down the mountain and turned him over to the police. After they were finished, Robin looked at the other Titans.

"We better leave the country, no doubt my parents are trying to get out of here as well," Robin said.

"But where would we go? I mean, it's not like your parents can contact you," Cyborg said, crossing his arms.

"Since Ubu won't tell me where my parents are, there's just one other person Ra's trusts as much as him."

"Oh, really, who's that?" Beast Boy asked. These assassin types were so secretive that it confused him.

"Lady Shiva, she's very good at what she does, and what she does is kill people, do Ra's Al Ghul's dirty work and keep all his secrets, she'd know where he'd be looking for them, if she doesn't already know where they are."

"Where do you think she is?" Cyborg asked.

"Last I heard, she was in Morocco," Robin answered.

"How'd you learn that?" Beast Boy asked, it seemed Robin knew everything about this League of Assassins.

"I'd say it's because I keep my ear to the ground, but some of these guys make more noise than a rhino at the ballet. Cyborg, set the T Ship's coordinates for Morocco."

* * *

_The Present…_

Cyborg did as he was told as soon as the Titans reached the T Ship. They flew off to Morocco, after many long hours they arrived and Robin made his way through the city of Rabat.

"I've contacted Thunder and Lightning, they're filling in for Hot Spot. They said they thought they saw Lady Shiva in the city. She must have a hit here or she wouldn't have been here for two weeks."

So the Teen Titans set about the tedious task of trying to find Lady Shiva, who was as elusive as someone trained in the art of assassination could be, Robin was often frustrated by the fact that she always seemed to be one step ahead of him. During his investigation the Titans had captured some of the League's goons and discovered a warehouse full of weapons and bullet molds, which Robin had kept, suspicious of the fact that the League of Assassins had no need to make their own bullets.

Two weeks had passed and the sun was high in the sky as Robin spotted Shiva exiting a building. Ra's Al Ghul had just ordered her to keep an eye on Slade and having finished her business in Morocco, assassinating a politician who know too much about a certain shipment of Kryptonite. His death would be blamed on a rival politician and no one would ever know that the League of Assassins had killed him to protect their secrets.

"Shiva!" Robin called to her. "I've been looking for you!"

Lady Shiva, turned to face him, not at all surprised to see him.

"The Prodigy, it's been a long time, hasn't it?" she sneered. "What do you want with me?"

"I want answers, where are the Flying Graysons?" Robin demanded. Getting answers from her wasn't going to be easy. He would probably have to beat them out of her.

"I shall make you a deal, Prodigy. Defeat me in single combat and I will tell you what you want to know."

"I heard you killed a politician over something about Kryptonite, what does your boss plan to do with it?"

"You deduced it was I who killed him? And you know about the Kryptonite. I'm impressed. You _are _a clever boy," she said, she moved quickly and kicked at him. Robin managed to block the kick with his arm.

He responded with a quick series of kicks and punches. Shiva avoided or blocked each of his attacks.

Robin dodged another blow and somersaulted backward. He landed on his feet and launched himself forward, straight at Lady Shiva, his fist clenched ready to strike her.

Robin managed to land a blow and hit Shiva across the face. She stumbled back and Robin quickly removed a pair of Bird-A-Rangs from his utility belt, he plunged them into Shiva's thigh and she cried out in pain and surprise. She hadn't been expecting him to fight dirty.

Robin head butted her and sent her sprawling backward. He then reached down and hauled her to her feet.

"Where are my parents, Shiva, what's Ra's planning? What does he want with a hundred pounds of Kryptonite?" Robin demanded, glaring at Lady Shiva.

"As to the location of your parents, I do not know, but what he is planning with the Kryptonite, is it not obvious? Sell it to the highest bidder, make money?"

"He doesn't need money, you'll explain these bullet molds I found," Robin showed them to her.

"is that also not obvious?" she asked, Robin knew that Ra's plans were very, very sinister indeed.

"Where did you send the Kryptonite?"

"I won't tell you," she answered simply.

"Yes, you will," Robin said, jamming a needle in her arm. "It's a truth serum, so you have to tell me where the Kryptonite is."

"It's…in a warehouse…in your city, we had a generous offer…"

"I don't care about who wants it, I just needed to know where it is, thanks Shiva," Robin said, knocking her unconscious.

"That was a complete waste of time, let's go, perhaps I can find Ducard again and see if he's learned anything about where my parents are."

"Complete waste of time?! We just uncovered a plot involving Kryptonite?! How is that not important dude?!" Beast Boy asked.

"My parents are my highest priority, Kryptonite can wait," Robin turned away and began walking.

The Titans began heading back toward the T Ship when suddenly, Robin spotted a familiar face. It was Zatanna, what was she doing here? He wondered. She was an illusionist/real magician when no one was around. She had made quite a name for herself, and was even a member of the Justice League.

"Hello Robin, what brings you here to Morocco?" Zatanna asked.

"I was about to ask you the same thing, Zatanna," Robin said as he shook her hand. She gave him a smile.

"These must be the Titans I have heard so much about. I'm Zatanna."

"The stage magician, and member of the Justice League on the side. I've heard about you," Cyborg said, shaking her hand.

"What brings me here…well, personal business," Robin said.

"Would this personal business have to do with your parents?" she asked. Robin was shocked. How did she know? And had she seen them?

"What do you know?" he asked quickly. "Have you seen them?"

"I have, and last I knew they're in your city," she said calmly. "Apparently, they've been there for a few weeks, sabotaging Orpheus Industries."

"Why would my parents sabotage an industrial company?" Robin asked, he knew they were a front for Ra's Al Ghul, but sabotaging them wouldn't do too much to make a dent in the man's many bank accounts.

"Retaliation, what else? Ra's played them for idiots, tried to get them to kill you, their only son. Isn't that reason enough?" Zatanna said.

"Yes, I know, but did you see them?"

"Yes, I did. They were alive the last time I saw them and I know they got out of Kravia shortly afterwards."

"When was that?" Robin asked, "I need to know."

"Two weeks ago," she replied. "I also have it from a good source that a "special" 100 plus pound shipment of "K" mysteriously "disappeared" recently too. I have my suspicions of who the culprits are, too."

"My parents, I wouldn't put it past my Dad to steal it, either," Robin sighed.

"K, what's K?" Beast Boy asked.

"Kryptonite, Shiva mentioned a shipment of Kryptonite," Robin pondered the significance of this turn of events. "They _stole_ it from the League of Assassins?"

Robin sighed, it must have been his Dad's idea to steal it. Mom didn't approve of stealing, and John just have suspected something big and decided to take it before it fell into the wrong hands. Still, the decision to steal over a hundred pounds of the stuff would have to be well thought out to move it somewhere without anyone noticing or becoming suspicious.

"Not from the League, but from someone who was very interested in buying it," Zatanna said.

"Thank you for your help, Zatanna. I have to go home. I have to find them before the League of Assassins do."

"Good luck, Robin," Zatanna smiled. "I hope you find them."

Robin ran toward the T Ship and the Titans quickly got it airborne. They found the quickest route home and took it.

Robin felt anxious. What would he do when he got home? How was he going to find them in his vast city? Maybe he would get lucky and someone would help him find them. Maybe someone had seen his parents and would recognize them from a photo.

A day, later they landed in Jump City. The media had gotten wind of their return and gathered on the roof of Titans Tower to ask questions.

They all climbed out of the T Ship and the questions began.

"Robin, where have you and the Titans been—?"

"What took you away from Jump for six months—?"

"Can you confirm if Slade is the reason for your departure—?"

Robin stared calmly out at the sea of reporters. "The Titans have been investigating the disappearance of a special shipment that was supposed to come into the city," he said quickly, concocting a cover story that would satisfy the curiosity of the reporters and paparazzi.

"What kind of shipment was it?" someone asked.

"All I can say is that it was classified and that I was not given the details," Robin explained. "It's been missing for quite some time and has been very difficult to track down. We're still working on this case as we speak. Thank you and that will be all for now." He headed into the Tower. The Titans quickly followed.

"Boshido, what's going on?" Robin asked.

"Well Robin, everything's been kinda quiet around here—" Boshido began.

"Except for the burglaries on First Street, Orpheus Industries is a target for thieves and vandals," Argent said. "I'm not quite sure why. We tried to capture them but they both got away—"

"Did you see them?" Robin asked.

"I _did _see them," Argent said. "The lady was…dare I say this about a thief, very pretty."

"Was this her?" Robin said, holding up a family photo he had of the Flying Graysons.

"Yes, that is her, why would you have a picture of her—" Argent asked.

"Robin, we've got an alarm!" Cyborg said. "And it's not just anyone, it's Slade!"

"Titans, move!" he ordered. They ran out of the Tower as fast as they could.

"We have to stop Slade! Especially after what he tried to do to my mother!" Robin called to the others.

"What did he try to do to your Mother?" Starfire asked.

"He tried to seduce her, and when that didn't work, he tried to rape her!" Robin shouted. "He's going to pay for it, too!"

"But that doesn't sound like something Slade would do," Cyborg said. "What would give him that idea?"

"Ra's Al Ghul, it's part of his sick plan to get my parents to follow him," Robin answered.

"Dude, that is so wrong," Beast Boy said.

"I hate rapists," Raven seethed. "He's not going to get away with this."

Robin followed the coordinates on his communicator and jumped on his R Cycle, Cyborg grabbed the T Car while Starfire, Beast Boy and Raven all few alongside him. They traveled through the city, down past First Street and passed the subway. They headed over to the West Side near the Burger Place and Robin turned down an alley and saw his father John Grayson battling Slade. He came to a dead stop.

He saw John Grayson go flying across the pavement and land on the concrete. He grunted as he climbed to his feet.

"Now John, surely you can do better, as Robin's _birth father_, I expected a lot more from you," Slade sneered.

John wielded his crowbar and ran straight at the one eyed psychopath.

"Let me tell you something, Slade," John said, breathing hard. "We Graysons don't take crap from anybody, especially you."

Gripping the crowbar, John swung straight at Slade, managing to hit him across the face with it. He managed to score another blow. Slade suddenly grabbed his arm and forced him to drop the crowbar.

John somersaulted over Slade and executed a high kick, his booted foot slammed into the side of Slade's head as he removed a Bo Staff from his belt. He began swinging it and hit Slade in the midsection as he pressed him back toward the wall.

Starfire was about to go help the man when she saw an injured woman lying face down on the ground. She ran over to her and helped her up.

"Please, let me help you," Starfire said quietly.

"Thank you, but don't help me, help John…" Mary whispered. Starfire wanted to stay with this woman and make sure she was safe. She felt a connection with her, but she didn't know what it was, until she saw Robin come into view.

Robin could see his Mother lying on the ground. He gasped in shock. She was bleeding.

She raised her eyes and saw him.

"Dick!" she screamed.

"NO!" Robin roared as he rushed at his hated foe, swinging his fists as he threw punch after punch, unleashing his rage on Slade.

"Titans, go!" Robin ordered. The other Titans moved forward while Starfire tried to help Mary stop the bleeding in her injured fingers.

Cyborg fired a barrage of lasers from his Sonic Cannon while Beast Boy transformed into a tiger and slashed at Slade. The man avoided Beast Boy's attack but took a hit from Cyborg's cover fire and moved back toward the end of the alley.

Raven summoned her powers. "Azarath, Metrion, Zinthos!" She used her powers to grab Slade and slam him into the ground.

John looked at Dick, taking in the sight of his grown up son for the first time. The two held each other's gaze for what seemed like an eternity before they both brandished their weapons and charged forward.

Robin executed a high flying kick while John hit him in the midsection with a quadruple somersault, the one maneuver that had made him famous his entire life. His feet hit Slade hard and the man staggered back as he was hit from all sides by Cyborg, Raven, Beast Boy, Robin and John Grayson. He was breathing hard as he took a step backward.

"This isn't working in my favor, we'll finish this some other time," Slade said, hastily pulling out a smoke grenade, he threw it down and it exploded. Robin tried to see where he had gone but Slade had disappeared.

"I can't believe it!" Robin fumed. "He got away, _AGAIN!_"

"That's not the most important thing right now, son, _she is_," John said.

Robin turned to see his birth father, John Grayson in the flesh, dressed in a tan trench coat and wearing black body armor. He had a utility belt and was holding a Bo Staff in his hand.

That's when he remembered that his Mother had been injured during the fight with Slade. It must have happened before he got there.

"Mom!" Robin said, running over to her. He saw her with Starfire. Her eyes were shut, she was probably concentrating on ignoring the pain in her body. Her fingers were bleeding as if they'd been shot off with a gun. He figured that was what had happened.

"Are you all right?" he asked.

She opened her eyes wearily and stared at him. "Little Robin, is that you son?"

"Yes, Mom, it's me. You're going to be okay, now," he whispered quietly.

Mary's face had an amused expression and she managed to smile. "You're so handsome Dick…Just like the dreams."

"So you had them too, huh? Then it wasn't just me," Robin said. The other Titans were stunned. Robin had mentioned he had dreamed about a conversation with his Mother, but she had the same dream too? How was that possible?

"Yeah, I had that one too," Mary reached up with her good hand and ran her fingers through her son's hair.

"You don't know how good it is to see you," she said, smiling with tears in her eyes. Robin knew she wasn't crying from pain. His eyes watered and he embraced her.

They just sat there for a minute, holding each other tightly. He missed her hugs and wished they could just stay that way forever, but he knew he would have to give her medical attention for her injuries. He pulled away and removed some bandages from his utility belt. He wrapped them gently around her injured fingers.

"That should be good enough for now until we get back to the Tower," Robin said, he turned to his father.

"She'll be okay, son?" John asked, concern in his voice.

"Yeah, Dad, she'll live. We have to get out of here, she's lost a lot of blood."

"I understand, and Dick," John paused for a moment. Robin turned back to face his father for the first time in years.

"What Dad?" he asked.

"I'm proud of you, boy," John said, ruffling his hair affectionately.

"Thanks, Dad…let's go home," Robin said. They turned toward Titans Tower. The Graysons were finally together and they were going home.


	10. Chapter X: Sanctuary

**Chapter X: Sanctuary**

The Titans made their way into their Tower, with John carrying Mary in his arms as Robin walked closely beside him, watching over his mother.

The Honorary Titans looked up from their activities to stare at them in shock. Argent was the first to speak up.

"Hey, I recognize them! They're the thieves who've been stealing from Orpheus Industries! Robin, what are they doing here?" she asked. She recognized Mary because she was able to identify her as one of the perpetrators at the scene who had managed to escape before the Honorary Titans could catch her and John.

"She needs medical attention, Argent," Robin replied quickly. He wanted to get his mother to the medical bay so he could get blood pumped into her system.

"You never answered my question before you all ran out of here, you know," Argent said, placing her hands on her hips.

"What question was that again?" Robin asked.

"You never told me who she was or why you had a picture of her," Argent frowned. Why was the leader of the Teen Titans trying to protect a criminal who had sabotaged an industrial company?

"She's…she's my Mother, Argent, and that's all I'll say for now," Robin said. "The rest is too dangerous for you to know."

"You're…Mother, Robin, I'm sorry, but how can your mother be a criminal?" she asked.

"It's not of her own volition, and I won't say anything more," John said in a curt tone of voice, leaving no room for debate.

"Who's this?" Boshido asked. Jericho walked over and looked at them with some interest. John thought he knew this boy from somewhere but couldn't say how.

"He's my father, please, we need to get my mother to the medical bay," Robin said. They all moved her quickly to the medical bay and Robin wondered if his mother had passed out from blood loss.

"Mom, are you awake?" he asked.

"Yes, son, I'm awake…just exhausted," Mary answered, sounding very tired. Dick saw his father quietly kiss her forehead.

"Dick said you're going to be fine," he reassured her. "Just rest, okay?"

"Okay," Mary sighed, she felt so tired, she just wanted to close her eyes and sleep.

John placed her on the bed and Cyborg asked for her blood type. John told him and he went off to get it. Robin hooked up the I-V and Starfire went off to get some fresh bandages.

Raven moved forward and gently placed her hand on top of Mary's. John looked surprised when he saw a dark shadow envelop his wife's hand.

"What is it?" he asked Raven.

"It's my powers, I can heal her," she replied.

"Thank you," John said, grateful to this young girl for her help. He'd only read small snippets about her in the paper and knew that her name was Raven. He didn't know what those powers she possessed did, but if it helped then he'd be fine with that.

John saw the red haired girl re-enter the room and knew immediately that this was the Starfire girl Kitten had talked about as she fumed on the edge of the Jump City Bay. From what he could tell there was an innocence, a sweet natured aura about her that was irresistible. He smiled, so _this _was his son's girlfriend.

John suddenly chuckled, startling everyone except Robin, who had already figured out that his Father was scrutinizing his girlfriend. John couldn't help but think that Starfire was a good mix of both their personalities, she had his wife's giving, caring nature, and his no nonsense attitude. It would be the perfect combination that his son would need to…forget the pain of losing them. Besides, she seemed sweet enough and a little naïve, but she was far from stupid, he could tell.

Kitten had also mentioned that Starfire was an alien, which made him wonder how the beings on her home planet felt about her being there.

Starfire moved to remove the bandages off Mary's fingers when John placed a hand on her arm, stopping her.

"No, no, you don't need to do that, I'll help her," he said.

"Are you sure you do not wish for me to help…" she couldn't remember his name so she added, "…Sir?"

"Please," he laughed, "call me John, and don't worry, Starfire, I'll take care of her."

Starfire was surprised that Robin's father knew her name, so she asked, "How do you know who I am?"

"A girl named Kitten mentioned you, and it seemed she thinks Robin dumped her for you," John replied.

"Is that what she told you?" Starfire asked.

"Yes, she did, and I can see why, Mary wanted to drop kick her to the next time zone, Kitten's _very_ annoying," he laughed. He proceeded to change Mary's bandages and made sure her wounds were clean.

"I guess being annoyed with her runs in the family," Dick said. "Dad, are you okay, you seem…distracted."

"I just can't help thinking about how stupid I've been. I've been careless, blind, and ignorant, this is the second time…I've left your Mother alone...and look what happened to her." John put his head in his hands.

"What kind of husband or father am I if I can't even protect my own wife from a bunch of psychotic nut jobs?" he asked, more to himself than to his son.

"I know about the first time, in the temple, what Slade did...Dad, how could you just leave her in a room with him?"

"Honestly son, I didn't intentionally leave her there with him, I walked out and I thought she was with me…" he sighed again. "I'm stupid…stupid…stupid…"

"You should have suspected something, taken Mom seriously when she said she didn't trust him!" Robin shouted, "You should have known there was something going on there that wasn't right!"

"I _did _know _something _was going on when I found out that Ra's Al Ghul lied about what happened to Tony Zucco," John became exasperated. "But honestly, Dick—you better answer me honestly when I ask you this—how was I supposed to know that the man who was training your mother and I was a deranged psychopath, who just happened to be your arch foe?"

"You should have been able to—" Dick began but John cut him off.

"Don't tell me what I should or shouldn't have done, son. All this is new to me, I've never had to deal with criminals on a daily basis. If you were in my shoes and died and somebody brought you back and tried to manipulate you into killing us, you would have made the same choices I have…You can't say I'm not trying to sort all this out. You've had training from Batman and you can figure this stuff out, but I can't…so don't judge me for what I've done. I've done all I can do in my situation."

"Dad, I'm sorry. I never thought about it that way—I was just worried about Mom, that's all…" Dick looked down at his shoes for a second, trying to gather his thoughts.

"Don't worry, boy, we're both worried about her," John said. He heaved a sigh, "If something ever happened to her I don't know what I'd do. I still don't understand how…you were able to carry on without us…you have such strength Dickie…and I honestly don't know where it comes from…"

"Well, I guess it comes from you…and please don't call me "Dickie" anymore, you're embarrassing me!" Dick said as he heard Cyborg and Beast Boy snickering behind him.

"Sorry, I can't help it, I suppose. I haven't seen you since you were twelve," John said, laughing.

John looked down at his sleeping wife and sighed. He rose to his feet and moved to kneel beside her. He made the sign of the Cross over her.

"_Amaro Dat, kai san ando rhaio, te avel cho anav ankerdo Swunto. Chi amperetsia te avel, chi voia te kerdiol pe phuv sar ando rhaio…" _he said quietly.

Beast Boy, Starfire, Raven and Cyborg moved over to see what he was doing.

"Dude, what's he saying?" Beast Boy asked.

"It's Romani," Robin replied.

"Is he praying?" Raven asked.

"It's the Lord's Prayer, I think," Robin said, staring at his father. Even after everything that happened, John still believed in God. He supposed it made sense, after all, his parents _did _go to Heaven.

"I think so," Cyborg said. "Robin I didn't know you were religious."

"My parents were Catholic," Robin explained. He wasn't sure what he believed, but his parents' faith had always impressed him as a child. Then they died and he could never understand why God would let two wonderful people die, but now that they were alive, he wasn't sure if he should thank God or not.

"And are you still Catholic?" Starfire asked. She did not understand all the different religions on Earth but she understood that Catholicism was a denomination of Christianity, which she had never really paid attention to.

"_De amen adies amaro manrho sar swako dies…" _John continued quietly. "_Iertisar amare bezexa; sar vi ame iertis kodolen kai keren bezexa karing amende. Na mek ame te zhas ando zumaimos; numa skepisar ame katar o nasul iek." _He finished praying and looked up.

John was about to ask Dick where he could get some coffee when suddenly, he thought he heard Mary stirring from sleep.

"John…" Mary said in a quiet voice. "How long have I been asleep?"

John reached out and gently took her hand in his own. "You've been asleep for a few hours, he smiled at her. "You're doing much better now."

"Mom," Dick smiled, hugging her quickly.

"Hey son," she smiled. "You okay? This must be quite a shock."

"I'm fine Mom, I'm fine," he replied. "Are you feeling better?"

"Much," she replied. "Are we safe?"

"Yes, Mom, we're safe," Dick reassured her. She smiled.

"So…where are these other Titans I've heard so much about?" she asked. The other Titans moved forward.

"Mom, these are my friends, Cyborg, Beast Boy, Raven…" he was about to introduce Starfire and felt very nervous about introducing his Mother to his girlfriend.

"This must be Starfire," Mary said as she noticed the redhead looked a little shy. From what Mary read about her, she was fun and outgoing, at least, that was according to the papers and such. She could understand her nervousness, it was how she had felt when she had met John's parents.

Starfire hesitantly approached Robin's Mother, wondering what she thought of her. She had never dreamed that he would ever meet the woman who had raised the boy she loved, and knowing she had been dead for years made her wonder if she would be accepted by someone who didn't even know her.

Much to the Titans astonishment, especially Robin's, Mary Grayson pulled Starfire into a fierce hug. Usually, it was Starfire who gave the hugs and was the first to ask questions of strangers. It seemed strange for the alien girl to be so silent, but being Tamaranean, they revered their k'norfkas, they could either be parents or nannies. Starfire was uncharacteristically quiet out of respect for Robin's mother and the fact that she couldn't think of anything to say to her.

"Thank you," Mary said quietly. Starfire was astonished. What could this woman possibly thank _her _for? Starfire should be grateful to _her _for bringing the boy she loved into the world. Starfire was confused.

"Why would you thank me?" Starfire asked.

"You've done so much for Dick, I think you're the closest thing he's had to any sort of motherly influence in his life, and for that, I'm grateful. From what I know, Batman's not married."

"You are welcome…but I do not know what to say," Starfire said . She had never been this nervous in her life. She took a deep breath and smiled. "It is nice to finally meet you. Robin…Richard has told me much about you."

"Likewise," Mary said. Starfire was a sweet girl. Dick had been very lucky to meet her. She wasn't worldly wise, but had an innocence that was charming and had a unique outlook on life. It was just what her son needed, because his life had been filled with tragedy, he needed someone who could lift his spirits and help him maintain a positive attitude in a negative world.

"Do you guys happen to have something to eat in this Tower? I'm starving," she said, looking at her son.

"I'll show you Mom, Robin said. "Cyborg, it's all right to remove the I-V, isn't it?"

"Yeah, let me get that," Cyborg said, removing both the I-V and the blood transfusion needle.

"Ow," Mary grunted. Cyborg gave her some band aids and she placed them over the puncture holes.

Everyone followed Robin as they made their way to the kitchen.

"Does she still know how to cook?" Beast Boy asked.

Mary looked indignant. "I'm a mother, of course I know how to cook. Cooking is like riding a bike, you'll never forget how."

"Let's just hope she doesn't burn it!" Beast Boy joked. All he got was an ugly glare from all three members of the Grayson family. "It was just a joke," he quipped.

"Mom doesn't joke about her cooking," Robin said, a semi-serious look on his face. "Mom, please, make yourself at home. This is where we live now."

"Oh," he said apologetically. "Sorry."

"Don't worry about it," Mary told him. "I just want to do something normal for once."

* * *

Later that night, after the Honorary Titans had departed with strict orders not to tell anyone about the Graysons, Mary went to sleep, and for the first time in a long time, she dreamed…

_Mary knew that she had to help John check the rigging after the show. Everything had gone off without a hitch as Haly Circus' tour of Kravia ended. She had heard that Prince Kravik himself had attended the gala. _

_Now she didn't know much about politics but she knew that this Prince Kravik was a tyrant who murdered thousands of innocent people just because of their race or religion. She was looking forward to getting back to the good old U.S. of A. where this wasn't an issue. She had just finished checking her part of the rigging when suddenly, she heard the tent flap open._

_She saw a boy walk in. He appeared to be Dick's age and she recognized him as Prince Kravik. What was _he_ doing here? She wondered. He wasn't supposed to be in here, the show was over, there was nothing to see._

_Suddenly, she spotted someone else in the arena. John had seen it too and turned around. They could only watch as they recognized the other person below them. They didn't know his name but had heard he was called "Pickles The Clown". He had been a new addition that had appeared out of nowhere. They didn't know who he was, but he had been given the position because they had been short a clown for their performance when one of them had unexpectedly gotten food poisoning. _

_They had thought the last minute addition was strange but didn't say a word about it. Mary didn't understand what was going on. Why were Prince Kravik and Pickles the Clown inside this tent?_

_Without any warning, she saw Pickles the Clown grab Prince Kravik by his shirt, and pull out a knife. He stabbed the Prince over and over again in his chest and stomach. Mary could hear Prince Kravik screaming and despite her dislike of the tyrant, she knew that no one should die such a horrible death. _

_She felt John's arms wrap around her, reassuring her that everything was going to be fine. Then, the most terrible thing happened. Pickles the Clown looked up and saw them staring down at him. _

_The look on his face was pure anger and rage. The look in his eyes was that of suspicion, he also had a glint in his eyes, and Mary had to wonder if he was going to kill them too. Then, he dragged the body out of the arena. The look he gave them made her blood run cold, it was the look of one who was contemplating killing them._

Mary awoke with a start. She hadn't thought about what had happened in Kravia for months, but still, the images in her mind weren't leaving her alone. She could still hear that boy's screams and see the blood on the clown's face.

She shook her head, dislodging the memories from her mind. She made her way out to the kitchen, it was one in the morning, she had used a flashlight to get out there, and found the light switch. She searched the cabinets and found some herbal tea.

Mary put a pot on the stove and began boiling water. She thought she heard footsteps and looked up, wary. She saw the blue cloaked girl Raven standing in the doorway.

"What are you doing up at this hour?" Raven asked. She had felt Mary's emotional turmoil and was curious, after all, this was Robin's mother. She didn't seem like the type to have emotional problems, it seemed that she had a good relationship with her husband and her son.

"I could ask you the same question," Mary said, looking over at her. "I was just making myself some tea. Do you want any?"

"Sure," Raven replied. Why not? She could get to know Robin's mother a little better and see what was troubling her. She had felt the emotional disturbance from her room and needed to satisfy her own curiosity.

The tea was ready and Mary poured some for them both.

"Is something on your mind? You don't look well," Raven said. The woman looked liked she had had a nightmare. She wondered if that was what was bothering her.

"It was just a nightmare, that's all, nothing for you to worry about," Mary said, reassuring Raven that she was fine.

"Are you sure you don't want to talk about it?" Raven asked.

"It's not important, I'm fine really; but I have been thinking about things, ever since I came back…" Mary said quietly. She looked at Raven.

"What do you know about these Lazarus Pits, Raven?" she asked. Raven hadn't quite been expecting the question, but she did her best to answer.

"I've been taught by the Monks of Azarath that those Pits are evil, and that when someone goes in they come out with only half a soul," Raven said honestly.

"That's interesting, so the rumors about being insane when you come out aren't just hearsay," Mary sighed. It was as she feared. She had questions about herself and these things that she didn't understand.

"What do you mean?" Raven asked, fascinated. She'd never talked to anyone who had been immersed in a Lazarus Pit before and was interested in what Mary thought about it.

"All this time…I've been wondering if I've been losing my mind…when I fought Slade out there, I told him that I'd make him pay for everything he'd ever done to Dick and…these feelings, I don't know where they come from, really. Vengeance has never been in me, and I can't tell if it's the Lazarus Pit affecting me, or if it's me and my emotions. It's just…the world's gotten a whole lot darker since I was alive and…I don't know what to do anymore."

"Well, I can tell you that you seem sane enough to me," Raven reassured her. "Concerning Slade, well, it's not that hard to hate him. He's done horrible stuff to all of us."

"He told me how he threatened to kill you all if Robin didn't work for him…is it true?" Mary asked Raven.

Raven nodded. "It's true, Slade did threaten us. He put nanoscopic probes inside our bodies and after the first time he tried to kill us, we went after Robin to rescue him from Slade. He tried to kill us again, and Robin had to watch…Slade ordered him to attack us, but Robin refused. Instead, he ran forward and launched himself onto the device that Slade stored the probes in and filled himself with the same probes. He told Slade that if we died, he'd die too. It forced Slade to stop his attack and then we fought him until he detonated explosives inside his hideout. We managed to escape but Slade got away."

"That seems to be a running thing with Slade, isn't it? He always seems to get away," Mary said, sipping her tea.

"Yes, but we'll get him one day," Raven said, drinking hers too.

"I always told Dick that death was never something to be afraid of. That there were worst things than dying."

"What could be worse than dying?" Raven asked, curious.

"Having a life with no purpose," Mary said. Raven couldn't argue with that.

"Is that why Robin's always so cheerful?"

"No, his optimism comes from his father. Me, I'm a little more skeptical," Mary said.

"You should go back to bed, if Robin finds you awake, he'll be worried," Raven suggested.

"Yeah, I know, and John will too. Thank you Raven, for your help. You've put my mind at ease," Mary smiled. She was a good girl, that Raven. There was just something, darker about her, and knew that all she wanted was a friend. Mary was fond of her: she was the daughter she had never had. She hoped that they could be friends and that she might be able to help Raven if she ever needed anything.

* * *

Slade was furious, absolutely furious. All this was Ra's Al Ghul's fault. If he hadn't concocted his stupid plan to kill Robin using the Flying Graysons, things would have been just fine. His latest scheme had been falling into place without a hitch until the Demon's Head decided to put his stupid plan into effect.

He had been so careful, so calculating, so cunning. Now it was all in pieces and he could blame no one except—well he _could _blame the Flying Graysons but he didn't see the point in that. It was still Ra's Al Ghul's fault that his greatest weapon for the most important hit of his mercenary career had been stolen right from under his nose.

He'd spent so much time gathering the Kryptonite, so much time eliminating anyone who could give him away. Working with the League of Assassins, while not his style, did have its advantages. Ra's Al Ghul had sent Lady Shiva to assassinate a politician in Morocco who knew too much. They were paying him a fortune to have him kill Superman with Kryptonite bullets so that no one would trace it back to them.

But when Ra's Al Ghul had approached him with the side job of training Robin's parents in the art of combat, he had thought it was a joke, but when the man had assured him that the boy's parents were very much alive and that it would be worth his while to do it, Slade agreed, finding it ironic, and worth the price.

Seeing John and Mary Grayson together had made Slade burn with jealousy towards both of them. He hated John Grayson, he was everything Slade could have been if his life had taken a better turn, if he had been honorably discharged from the army with a good retirement plan, if his wife had understood why he had taken his mercenary jobs, and if his son had not been kidnapped by the Jackal and had his throat slit before he could have saved him. If fate hadn't decided to take everything from him, he would have been like John Grayson: a man with an adoring wife and a loving family.

This man, this wandering Gypsy acrobat didn't deserve to have such a good life. It wasn't fair that _he _had the life and family Slade could only wish for. Oh yes, he hated John for that and looked forward to the day that he would die a horrible, excruciating death.

Mary Grayson: He hated her as much as, if not more than he hated John. Why did she have to be so beautiful? She was so much like his ex wife Adeline. Fiery and beautiful, charming and caring. She was everything that he had seen in his wife when they had first met, albeit, Adeline had been harsher to him because she was in the service like he was, but when they were out of uniform, she was completely different.

Adeline had also been a nurturing mother to Joseph and Grant, she had raised their sons well and loved them dearly. He had eavesdropped on the Graysons' conversations and knew how lovingly Mary had spoken of her son Dick, how proud she was of him and how she hoped to find him.

Slade knew that Mary had a strong influence in her son's life. He could see where Robin's defiance came from. Slade hated her for what she had instilled in her son: a sense of right and wrong so strong that he would never back down from doing what he thought was right.

Slade couldn't help but wish that Mary Grayson could have been _his_ wife. She had the one thing Adeline had lacked: Undying loyalty. Sure, Adeline had been a wonderful wife, and she had loved him dearly, but how could he have missed his opportunity to find and marry someone who would have stood by him no matter what?

To top it off and break the camel's back, so to speak, the Graysons had escaped Ra's Al Ghul and had stolen his shipment of Kryptonite, effectively putting his assassination job on hold until he could get a hold of it again. Ra's wasn't about to pay him for an unfinished job, and he needed that money to fund other schemes, his plans to defeat the Titans had been on hold because of lack of funds, that was why he had taken the jobs, to get more money. Now it looked like everything was at a standstill.

Slade turned away from the picture of the Flying Graysons that hung on his wall. He kept the picture of his targets so he could see them, and try to figure out how to kill them. He suddenly flew into a rage and picked up a sword from the corner of the room and threw it into the wall, shredding part of John and Mary's smiling faces as he stared at Dick Grayson's eyes.

"It's not fair that you and your family have the life _I _want," he seethed. "I hate you all and I'm going to finish you all for good!" he raved at the poster. He had never wanted revenge so badly in all his life and he was going to make sure he got it, no matter what it took, the Grayson family was going to die.

* * *

Ra's Al Ghul was frustrated. Things could have not gotten any worse if Batman himself had descended from the sky at that very moment. The Graysons were together again, at least, that was what his spies were reporting. Just what he _hadn't _wanted, a precious family reunion with no hidden intentions.

He'd also received word from Lady Shiva that Robin knew about the Kryptonite. He was furious that he had gotten the information out of her, but she had said there was nothing she could do about it, as she'd been given a Truth Serum before her interrogation by the Boy Wonder.

Ra's Al Ghul decided he was pulling out all the stops, Merlyn, Shiva, and Shrike; they would be the perfect combination to eliminate the Graysons. Separate, they had all failed, together they would succeed, and with Slade there it would be much easier to kill all of them, even if the Titans aided Robin, there was no way they could survive an encounter with his best assassins.

"Shiva," he said, making contact with one of the world's deadliest assassins.

"What do you want me to do next?" she asked.

"Go to Jump City, Shrike is already there and I will send Merlyn to accompany you. Make contact with Slade and tell him that I have sent you to help him eliminate our "problem"."

"What if he suspects that you have sent me to keep an eye on him?" she asked. Yes, this was a concern but Ra's had a feeling that Slade wasn't thinking about him being a threat, he was just interested in killing the Graysons so he could get paid.

"He will be more obsessed with killing Robin's parents and exacting his revenge than being concerned with worrying about being double-crossed by me, should things fall apart, however, you know what to do."

"Yes, Master," she said. "Your wish is my command. I shall eliminate all who oppose you." Shiva signed off.

There was just one more thing he had to do, he knew that if his assassins failed, the Graysons would live. He had one more trick up his sleeve and he was going to make sure that there was no way the Titans or the Graysons would survive. There was a man who had a power that would prove very useful for this assignment.

He patched in the codes and transmitted his message. He saw a bearded man appear on the screen. He had white hair and a goatee with a strange looking device covering one of his eyes.

"Count Vertigo, I have need of your services…"

* * *

It was early the next day as Beast Boy made his way up to the roof of Titans Tower. He'd woken up early due to the excitement of having Robin's real parents in the Tower. He'd been a little jealous of Robin, seeing as his parents had been resurrected.

But then it occurred to him the reason _why _Robin's parents had been brought back and it disturbed him. They were supposed to kill their own kid. How could anyone want someone to do that to their children? He couldn't fathom it and had been thinking about it when he'd seen Robin's father John, he thought his name was, go up this way.

Beast Boy was curious about Robin's father. He'd been too nervous to make conversation with the man but he seemed like an easygoing person, it shouldn't be too hard to strike up a conversation with him.

He saw John Grayson standing on the roof looking out at the sea, his hands behind his back as if he were thinking.

"Hello," Beast Boy said, giving John a sheepish look. John turned and looked at the green skinned boy and smiled.

"Hello there," John said. He remembered that Robin had introduced the young man as Beast Boy and noticed that the boy had a knack for telling jokes, not that they were actually funny, but he liked to tell jokes nonetheless.

"Is there something I can do for you?" John asked.

"Uh, well, I uh—okay, I did kinda want to ask you something," Beast Boy admitted sheepishly.

"Ask away, kid," John laughed.

"Why are you always so…happy?" Beast Boy asked. He had always expected Robin's father to be stern and serious. He expected John Grayson to smile and laugh of course but all the man's optimism surprised him. He had expected him to be…different somehow. He'd been expecting to see Batman or something, and this man was nothing like Batman.

"Why shouldn't I be happy?" John told him. "I have my wife, my son. I'm not worm food anymore and I have everything anyone needs to be happy. Why do you ask?"

"It's just…I was kinda expecting…" Beast Boy began to say, "Batman," but John cut him off.

"Batman. I know. They're all expecting me to be Batman, but I'm not. And I don't want to be Batman."

"Who's the "they" you're talking about?" Beast Boy asked.

"Slade…Ra's Al Ghul…the League of Assassins…all that time we were with them I'd hear them whisper about how "soft" I was. How "weak" I was, how there was no way I could be Robin's father because I wasn't just like "Batman". All that dark, creepy stuff, I can't do, and I never could 'cause I don't have that in me. Ra's, well, everything he ever told me was a lie and Slade…well…Slade thinks I'm a joke…I swear he hates me too."

"Well, Slade hates everybody," Beast Boy agreed. There wasn't any doubt about that. Slade hated anyone who got in his way and apparently Robin's folks really got in his way.

John sighed, "I agree with you there, but I don't care what they think. I don't think I could ever be Batman, even if I wanted to be. Whatever happened to Batman to make him a dark and brooding person must've been really traumatic. Something that he just couldn't walk away from. Whatever it was…it was an event that changed him forever. I've never experienced something so traumatic that it would make me a darker person. Whoever he is, I think he's good though, or he wouldn't have taken my boy in and raised him to be such a good person."

John laughed. Beast Boy noted that his laugh was warm and good natured, instantly lightening the mood and easing his discomfort.

"Of course, I tend to think that everyone's good. My wife's told me that herself, and she's right. I'm not the best at figuring out people, but I try."

They both looked over as they saw Robin walk out onto the roof, joining them.

"Good morning, why are you up so early Beast Boy?" Robin asked.

"Oh, just talking to your old man," Beast Boy said, desperately hoping John wouldn't be offended at being called an old man. John didn't seem to mind. He had referred to himself as "old" on more than one occasion.

"I hoped you slept well, and Dad, I just have one question for you," Robin said. John looked over at him.

"What's that, son?"

"Where'd you and Mom hide the one hundred pounds of Kryptonite?"


	11. Chapter XI: Good Life

**Chapter XI: Good Life **

_I hate this chapter. All this exposition, ugh! I feel like I'm explaining stuff everybody knows already! Aw well, it's necessary. _

"Dick, how did you know about the Kryptonite? And what makes you think _I_ have it?" John asked.

"I discovered from Lady Shiva that the League of Assassins had acquired one hundred pounds of Kryptonite and that they had sent it to someone. I also learned from the magician Zatanna that it went missing recently. She also told me about how she helped you and Mom and how you two had managed to get out of Kravia. I knew that you were behind the theft and that only you would be crazy enough to steal it before someone else did."

"Okay, you caught me," John laughed. "You really are the Batman's Prodigy after all."

"But I've always been your son," Dick said quietly. "I've never forgotten that."

"I'm grateful," John said, smiling. It was nice to be appreciated. "We need to get some breakfast, besides I have to wake your mother."

"Not until you tell me where that Kryptonite is, I need to move it here where it will be safer," Dick said, assuming his "Robin" persona once again. He was wearing his Robin uniform and John had to wonder if his son had slept at all.

"Who's to say it's not safe where I've hidden it?" John asked. "I'm not brainless, you know. I've kept it hidden and so far nobody's found it."

"I know that, it's just the Tower's more secure, and at least I could keep track it here," Robin said, folding his arms. "Well?"

"I won't tell you where it is Dick," John said. "I'll take you there."

"We should go now—" Robin began.

"Not until after breakfast, Dick," John interjected. "I'm sure it will be just fine right where it is," he reassured his son. That box wasn't going to sprout legs and walk off.

John turned around and made his way back into the Tower as Robin and Beast Boy watched him go.

"What'd you come up here to talk to him about?" Robin asked, looking at his green skinned friend.

"I was just asking him about stuff and how he's not like Batman. I don't know, I guess I just expected something different," Beast Boy said.

"Everyone is expecting him to be Batman, but he's not, and I'm glad of that. Come on, let's get some breakfast."

Beast Boy followed Robin inside and headed off to the kitchen while Robin saw his father make his way back to the living room where Mary was sleeping on the circular couch. Robin wondered what she was doing out there. He had shown them an empty guest room, not Terra's room of course, where they could sleep until he finished getting another room ready for them.

When Dick had left Gotham City he had taken many of his personal belongings with him, including a lot of his parents' possessions. He had pulled them out of the storage boxes and began furnishing a room for them after his mom had drifted off to sleep. The room he had given them was actually the Safety Room they had made for Raven when Trigon sent Slade and an army of fire demons after her. Robin thought the symbols were protective and reminded him of what he needed to do for his parents.

"Mary, wake up," John coaxed his sleeping wife. "It's morning."

"John," Mary yawned. "Let me sleep."

"Dick's up already, honey," John told her, knowing that she would probably wake up if Dick was awake.

"Oh, I guess I'll get up then," Mary conceded. She yawned again and rubbed the sleep from her eyes. Standing up, she straightened out her clothes and followed her son to the kitchen.

Mary heard Cyborg and Beast Boy talking. It sounded like they were arguing about something.

"…No, Beast Boy, we're not feeding Robin's birth parents tofu for breakfast!" Cyborg said, pounding the table for emphasis. "These people live on real food, unlike you, who eats tofu and pizza 24/7."

"There's nothing wrong with tofu!" Beast Boy retorted. "At least it's healthy."

"Ha! If you're so "healthy", why're you eating as much junk food as you've been eating?" Cyborg asked.

"I like chips, what's wrong with that?" Beast Boy shot back. Starfire and Raven walked in, noting the smell of brewing tea and coffee.

"If you two are arguing…" Starfire began.

"Then who's brewing the coffee and tea?" Raven finished.

"Huh?" both Titans asked in unison, looking over at the two girls. They turned around and saw mother and son quietly preparing breakfast for the others. Mary was doing as best she could, having lost two of her fingers the previous night.

"Since you two wouldn't stop arguing, we decided to make breakfast ourselves," Robin said. "Anybody hungry?"

"I'll make myself some tofu eggs first," Beast Boy said, quickly moving off to get his tofu from the refrigerator.

The rest of the other Titans along with the Graysons, with the exception of Mary and Starfire all sat down around the kitchen. The other two had gotten up to serve breakfast.

While the others were busy talking and laughing, Starfire remained unusually quiet as she had the previous night.

"Is something on your mind, Starfire?" Mary asked. She noted the alien girl had been strangely silent.

"Oh, it is…just…I was wondering why your son has never spoken of you before all this happened," Starfire did not know why Robin had never mentioned his mother. He had always been introverted, but he had never spoken of his mother until he had discovered the desecration of his parents' graves.

"I suppose it was...too painful," Mary said. "We were very close, all of us. We were his world. His whole life revolved around us. When we were taken from him, he lost everything. But don't feel bad, he wasn't always one to suppress his emotions, I suppose that he forced himself not to voice his feelings."

"I think I understand," Starfire said. "I know that your death changed him, and that he is very much like you."

"We'll talk about this more once we sit down," Mary smiled. "The others are probably starving." They carried the plates out and served the rest of the Titans breakfast.

They sat down and they all began to eat.

"I wanna ask you something Dick," John said, looking up from his food. "Just to satisfy an old man's curiosity."

"What's that?" Robin answered, "What do you want to know?"

"I know you were once Batman's sidekick, but who's been raising you all this time? Where did you live before you moved here?"

"I lived with multi-billionaire Bruce Wayne," Dick admitted. His parents' faces registered complete shock.

"The worst part about dying…wasn't the actual death, it was me wondering…who would take care of you when I was gone," Mary said, glancing down at her plate. "How did Bruce Wayne find you? I remember seeing him in the audience that night. That performance's' profits were supposed to go to Wayne Charities."

"He came to your funeral and…he paid all the expenses, he told me he was sorry for my loss," Dick said. He was hesitant to bring up the subject of Batman in the same context because, even if his parents were alive again, Bruce Wayne wouldn't want him to tell them about that.

"He's a good man, Bruce Wayne," John said. "He told me about his parents, once, when he toured with Haly Circus years ago. Said he wanted to learn acrobatics from me, heh, strange, isn't it?" John sighed, leaning back against his chair.

"The man has enough money to do whatever he wants and he traveled across the country with us. You weren't born yet Dick, we'd just gotten married. Although, he didn't _call _himself Bruce Wayne, I knew it was him when he said his parents had been murdered in Crime Alley, it wasn't that hard to figure out. I still think it's strange 'because if I were him I wouldn't tell anybody that. Maybe he trusted me, maybe he thought I wouldn't figure it out, who knows? Still, he called himself _John Smith, _which is the oldest alias in the book."

Dick nearly laughed aloud. _John Smith_? Bruce must have not had any detective training back then, he would have _never_ said anything about his "real" life if he were undercover nowadays. It must have been much different back then, when Bruce was trying to find his purpose and course in life. To think that _his father_ had taught Bruce Wayne his acrobatics that he used as Batman. Why hadn't he noticed that before? He had worked with Bruce for years but hadn't given Bruce's acrobatic training a second thought. Perhaps that was why Bruce had adopted him. The pieces all fit and it was strange that the two families were connected through fate.

"Still haven't figured out why he lied to me, but I'm sure there's a good reason for it," John sipped his coffee.

He stared at the Titans. "This conversation must be boring you, huh?"

"Oh no, you are the first formerly dead resurrected persons we have ever gotten to have a conversation with that did _not _involve destroying the world," Starfire said. "The last time we talked to a person who was formerly dead, it was Slade who had come back to help Trigon destroy the Earth," Starfire said.

Mary had been drinking tea but started choking and unexpectedly spit up the remainder of it. "Wait a minute….that perverted creep used to be _DEAD?!_ How did _that_ happen?!"

"A few years ago, we met a girl named Terra," Robin explained. "We discovered that she couldn't control her powers and she thought that Beast Boy had told us after she had secretly confided in him. She ran away and we didn't see her for three months, then she returned, saying that she could control her powers. We weren't sure if we could trust her but after she helped us defeat Slade, we let her join the team."

"She was with us for three weeks and everything was fine until Titans Tower was attacked by Sladebots--these robotic henchmen that work for Slade. We didn't know how they had gotten passed our security. We had to fight them off, Starfire, Cyborg, Raven and I. We then discovered that Beast Boy and Terra were gone. Terra had persuaded Beast Boy to go with her on a date far, far away, clear out of town."

"While they were out, Slade found them and attacked Beast Boy, Beast Boy fought him off and learned that Terra was working for Slade. He'd sent Terra back to us to learn all our secrets so he could kill us. She'd betrayed us even after all we did for her, taking her in and giving her a home. She didn't understand that Slade just wanted her to be his apprentice and that's why he manipulated her into joining him."

John and Mary were silent, listening to their son's story in horror. This was the man who had trained them to kill, this was the man who had tried to rape and murder Mary, the man who despised John and wanted them both dead. This was so very complicated, and yet, it made sense.

"When Beast Boy returned to the Tower, he told us everything. Needless to say, we were angry and hurt. We had trusted her and considered Terra a friend. A few weeks later, she attacked us while were out driving around in Cyborg's car. She'd been trained by Slade in martial arts and Terra managed to hold her own against all of us. We retreated back here and decided to give her one last chance to get away from Slade and come back to us."

Robin sighed, this subject, was still hard for him to talk about openly, but it was crucial for his parents to understand Slade and what they were up against. He had to give them all the details in order to prepare them for what they were going to face.

"That night, Terra staged a break in at the Jump City Maximum Security Prison. She released three of our deadliest enemies, Cinderblock, a monster made completely of rock, Plasmus, a metahuman that turns into an acid spewing thing that we don't even know what he is, and Overload, he's completely made of electrical energy and can steal anything that feeds off electricity. Slade had Terra place neural links on all of them and sent them to various places in the city, in order to separate us. We split up and went off to fight all of them, and after we defeated each of them, Terra would show up and fight us. She beat us too…I think it's because somewhere deep inside all of us, we didn't really want to fight her, she took advantage of that and used it against us. She nearly crushed my head with a rock and Starfire managed to shove me out of the way before it hit me and she plunged over the side of the cliff into the water below. She tried to drown Raven in mud and sealed Cyborg and Beast Boy in a pit she created using her power to control the earth. Lastly, she had to fight me, and when I asked her why she hated us so much, she said it was because I was born. That really ticked me off because it made me think of you, mom, and how she had no right to say that about you."

"This Terra girl should consider herself lucky that I was dead, I feel like I want to rearrange her face at the moment, never mind, what happened to you anyway?" Mary asked.

"Terra kept throwing rocks at me until I grew tired of dodging them. Then she broadsided me with a large boulder and piled rocks over me, thinking I'd be crushed by all that weight. I managed to escape after she left and I met up with the other Titans who had managed to get away from her too. We knew that she wasn't our fried and we weren't going to give her anymore chances. We confronted her after she drove everyone out of our city and we beat her back and she ran away. We had to beat back Slade's robots again and Ternion, which is a disgusting combination of Cinderblock, Overload and Plasmus. Beast Boy tracked Terra to Slade's hideout and he discovered that Slade was controlling Terra via the suit he had given her, now he was forcing her to fight us, even though she didn't want to anymore."

"We found Beast Boy right as Terra was about to kill him by plunging a large, razor sharp rock into his head. Beast Boy managed to convince Terra that she had a choice and that she didn't have to serve Slade and that she could do the right thing. She told him she was sorry for everything she'd done and then turned on Slade, using the neural suit against him. Her powers triggered a volcano, and she sent Slade plunging down into a pit of lava. She the sacrificed herself so we could escape and turned herself into stone."

"After that, we thought it was over but one year later, Slade returned, this time, he had supernatural powers, he could spew fire from his hands and there was a strange symbol on his forehead. He attacked Raven and spoke of a message. It turns out; he was resurrected by an inter-dimensional demon called Trigon, who planned to come our world using a "Portal". It wasn't until Slade attacked us again that Raven revealed the truth about her destiny that she was supposed to destroy the world by becoming Trigon's portal, and the reason is that Trigon is her father."

Mary turned and looked at Raven with an expression that was a mixture of horror and sympathy. She had noticed Raven's was a bit darker in personality, but she hadn't expected anything like this. She waited or what happened next.

"Trigon sent Slade with an army of fire demons to the Tower to retrieve Raven, but we put her in a safety room and we tried to protect her. Eventually, we were overwhelmed and captured. Raven came out and said that she would go with him. We didn't want her to and she used her powers to knock us out so we wouldn't' stop her. The last thing I heard her say was "Be safe." When we woke up we tracked her to an old library in the city where we had first discovered the prophecy about her birth. We couldn't stop Trigon from coming and Raven disappeared after she became to Portal. We thought she was dead and we tried to fight Trigon using the power she had given us when she knocked us out, but it didn't work. Slade came offering to help us, though he had his own motivations for it. He said that Raven could still be saved, but only one of us could go with him to rescue her. I went because I wanted to find her and I wanted answers from Slade about why he was doing all this."

"We traveled down deep into what I can only describe as Hell itself manifested. We had to fight off a small army of fire demons and they knocked off Slade's mask."

"Dude, did you actually get to see his face?" Beast Boy asked.

"No, all I saw was a skeleton, I asked him what happened and he wouldn't tell me until I gave him the ultimatum of giving me the answers or be left to his own devices. Because he needed my help he told me what had happened, how Trigon had resurrected him and had promised him his flesh and blood if he would help him open the Portal. He admitted he enjoyed what he called "fringe benefits" of his newfound powers and being able to lead an army of supernatural demons. But in the end, Trigon betrayed him because he coerced Raven to go with Slade instead of Slade bringing her to Trigon as he was instructed. Trigon tried to kill him but he was wearing a ring of Azar and it protected him from being disintegrated. He then told me where I could find Raven. After fighting more fire demons I found Raven in the ruins of the church where she had once taken me to hide from Slade when he had first returned. She didn't remember me then, but I managed to convince her to come with me and I told her stories about her life to help her remember what had happened."

"We were attacked by more demons and Raven nearly fell into a pit of lava, but I managed to pull her out and then she remembered everything and told me there wasn't any hope left because all her powers were gone. Then I told her that I'd have to have hope for both of us; she seemed to understand what I meant and so we made our way back to our friends who had been fighting evil replicas of themselves for hours."

"We decided that this was our last chance. Him or us. All or nothing. We attacked Trigon with everything we had. He used his powers to stop us but then Slade showed up."

"He told Trigon, "For the record, I'm nobody's servant," and threw a flaming ax in his eyes. We kept fighting him and fighting him, but then he knocked us out. The only one left was Raven, and when Trigon tried to destroy her, she discovered that she still had some of her powers. She realized that she had control of her own destiny and that he couldn't control her life just because he had created her. She took back the power she had given to us and used it to destroy Trigon and restore everything back to the way it was."

"It wasn't until after everything was back to normal that we realized that Slade had disappeared. We knew he'd come back someday, but I never dreamed it'd be because of you two," Robin said, gazing over at his parents, who were no doubt trying to process all this.

John drank his coffee. "I think I understand everything a little better, but I don't understand why Slade wanted Terra to be his apprentice, what would he need an apprentice for? Slade's a diabolical genius on his own."

"He wants someone to follow in his footsteps, he's got this twisted notion that he's like a father to me, and when I escaped him, he went after Terra."

John was stunned. "How come nobody's told me this?"

"I thought you knew already. Mom knew, Raven told me before I came up onto the roof about her conversation with Mom last night and that she'd asked her about it."

"Slade forced me to become his apprentice when he threatened to kill my friends if I didn't do what he said. He had planted baroscopic probes inside their bodies and if I disobeyed him, he'd kill them, and he'd make me watch….just like before when you both…" Robin sighed.

"I couldn't let them die, I guess it was the lesser of two evils, I suppose, but I never accepted it. I always fought him; I didn't want to work for him. I didn't want to steal things and become a criminal. The other Titans discovered what Slade had done and they came to rescue me. Slade tried to kill them using the probes but I ran over to the machine and let the probes fill my body. I gave him a choice, he could let my friends and I go, or I'd die with them…I'll admit, and I haven't told any of them this, but when it felt like I was going to die…I thought about you, and how I'd be able to see you all again…I really didn't want to die, but there was nothing I could do to stop those probes from tearing me apart. Then Slade destroyed the remote and came after me himself, I guess he respected me enough to let me live. We fought him, but he escaped, and now he's back again."

"Dick…" Mary whispered. She took her hand in his, holding it quietly.

"Mom, there's something I have to tell you," Robin told her. She wasn't going to like what he had to say.

"What's that, honey?" she asked.

"When Slade tried to rape you…that wasn't his idea, he didn't come up with that on his own. Someone told him to do that to you."

Mary could only look at him in horror. She knew that Slade was a sick, twisted man. He was totally capable of coming up with this on his own, but who would want him to do this to her?

"Dick, who told him to rape me?" she asked, dreading the answer.

"Ra's Al Ghul, he told Slade to do that so it would drive you both towards him, make you both loyal to his cause. And when Slade saw you both, I don't think it was that hard for him to like the idea. After all, Mom, you're beautiful….and I have no doubt if Dad hadn't gotten there in time, he would have raped you…and then he would have used that against me…he would have tormented me with what he would have done to you."

Now Robin had never seen his mother become visibly sick before, but after he told her that, she turned deathly white. She looked as if she were going to vomit right then and there. The other Titans watched as she got up from the table and ran over to the sink, they could hear her vomiting and Beast Boy covered his mouth too, he was getting sick because she was sick, and Cyborg was trying to ignore the sounds he was hearing because he wanted to keep his breakfast in his stomach.

Starfire and Raven were both worried and Starfire voiced her concern. "Robin…is she going to be okay?"

"I'll go check up on her," John said, getting up out of his chair. John made his way over to the refrigerator and pulled out a gallon of cold water from inside. He poured his wife a glass and handed it to her.

"Here, this'll make you feel better," he said, handing her the glass. She took it and drank it quickly. She turned on the water to wash all her bile down the drain. She turned off the faucet when it was finished.

Mary drank some more water to get the bitter taste out of her mouth.

"Are you okay?" John asked in a whisper.

"I just found out that everything that happened to me back in that temple was orchestrated by a lie, that someone I trusted planned to have a psychotic pervert rape me, and you're asking me if I'm okay?!"

"How do you think I feel?!" John retorted, trying to keep his voice even. "I'm the one who's supposed to take care of you…and I've been doing a lousy job of it, too."

John placed his hands on Mary's shoulders. "I promised to protect you and that's a promise I intend to keep." John quietly took his wife in his arms and kissed her, not caring that four of the five Titans were in complete shock, they weren't used to such open physical affection between two people, even Robin and Starfire's displays of affection in front of all of them were few and far between.

Robin however was not very surprised, they had always been physically affectionate, he'd gotten used to it after awhile. They had been equally affectionate with him, his mother always gave him hugs and kisses and his father would often hug him or ruffle his hair when he was a child, even in his pre-teens.

"Uh, Dude," Beast Boy asked. "Aren't you gonna…make them stop, or something? All this P.D.A. is freaking me out here!"

"They've always been that way," Robin said, smiling slightly. "So leave them alone, Beast Boy, and no teasing them about it."

"They are very sweet," Starfire told Robin. "You say they have always been this way, even when you were a child?"

"Yeah," Robin replied. "They haven't changed much."

"But they've been kissing for five whole stinking minutes already, and neither looks interested in stopping!" Beast Boy said loudly.

"B. Knock it off, they're married, it's normal," Cyborg said, he elbowed Robin. "How does he do it? You ever ask him?"

Robin noticed his father had deepened his kiss and his mother was running her fingers through his hair.

"He told me he breathes through his nose," Robin said. "Ignore them, it's what I did for years." Beast Boy noticed them too and his eyes popped out of his head.

"Okay, but I can't believe they can just kiss each other like that and you don't care." Beast Boy sighed. "I wanna be like that when I'm married."

"_If _you get married, Beast Boy," Raven remarked. "At the rate you're going you won't be married 'til you're thirty."

Robin went back to eating as if nothing was happening and the other Titans continued to watch the Graysons. They finally stopped kissing and pulled away.

"I don't taste like vomit do I?" Mary asked, leaning on John's shoulder.

"Nah, you're just fine. Feel better now?"

"Mmmhmm," she replied. She saw four of five Titans staring at her. "How long have you kids been watching us?"

Nobody answered that question.

"Apparently you all have been watching us for quite some time, or you wouldn't be blushing right now," Mary laughed. "Let me have my seat back, I actually have an appetite now."

"Oh, I just remembered something," Robin said, reaching down into his utility belt. In all the commotion of bringing his mother to the Tower, he'd forgotten about her wedding ring.

He pulled it out and held it out to her.

"I believe this belongs to you," he said.

She gasped. "Dick…how did you find this?"

"I found it in the cemetery, it must have fallen off of you when they were…taking you and dad away."

"I thought I'd lost it for good…" Mary felt tears stinging her eyes. John had used a large portion of his salary to buy her that ring when they were getting ready for their wedding. It was precious to her, she hadn't worn it when she died because it would interfere with her ability to grip the trapeze bar. She was touched that they had buried her with it.

Tears leaked out and streamed down her face. "Aw, look at me. I'm an emotional train wreck…"

"It's okay Mom," Dick said, smiling as he moved over and hugged her.

"Dad, I need you to take me to that K, A.S.A.P," Robin said, he was all business now.

"Okay, okay, I'll humor you," John sighed. "As soon as we get it here, you'll stop pestering me won't you?"

"Yes," Robin sighed. He wanted to get that Kryptonite to the Tower so he could lock it up in the safe.

"Since I'm done, we can go," John said, standing up. Robin joined him. "Mary, you should stay here with the Titans and rest. You've been through a lot."

"John, I want to go. I want to help--" Mary began.

"Mom, you really should stay," Robin said, agreeing with his father.

"But—"

"Please, Mom. Do it for me. I just want you to be safe, okay? It'd make me feel better knowing you're here," Robin pleaded. He didn't want her to get hurt and she did need to rest.

"I hate it when you do that," Mary said, exasperated.

"Do what, Mom?" Dick asked.

"Emotional bribery," she said. "You keep using how I feel about you to get me to do stuff."

"Hey, it works," Dick laughed.

"And it only works on me!" she exclaimed, running her fingers through her hair. "Okay, I give in. I'll stay. But don't think for one second that I'm going to forget this anytime soon."

"I know you won't," Dick said, walking out toward the elevator.

Mary Grayson sighed quietly. She walked into the living room and sat down on the circular couch. Beast Boy was sprawled on the couch, flipping though the channels.

"I guess your son didn't want you to go help him pick up the K, huh?" Beast Boy asked, looking up at her.

"I guess he didn't," Mary said, looking at him. "Mind if I see what's on?"

"Sure, why not?" Beast Boy replied. "Have at it."

Mary took the remote from him and began flipping through the channels. There wasn't anything on, just infomercials, MTV and soap operas. Mary frowned, "Is this all there is on TV, just junk?"

Beast Boy shrugged, unsure of what to say.

"Beast Boy, can I ask you a question?" Mary asked the green shape shifter.

"Sure, go ahead," he replied.

"Where's my son's room?" Mary asked.

"Oh, I'll show you," Beast Boy got up and led Mary down the hall and to Robin's room.

Mary gazed at the name engraved on the door. _Robin_. How appropriate. She had given him that nickname as a child. He hadn't really liked it, he said he'd be made fun of for it but it seemed to stick. What name could be better for the partner of the World's Greatest Detective? She pushed a button on the wall and opened the door.

Stepping into her son's room, she was surprised at how clean it was. It was immaculate, not a speck of dust anywhere, no clothes on the floor. Everything was clean.

"I can't believe he keeps his room this clean," she laughed. "I always told him to keep his room clean. I guess he listened to me after all."

"He rarely sleeps in there," Beast Boy told her. "He sleeps in the evidence room."

"The evidence room? Why?"

"He's always working, ya know, crime fighting. He's always trying to solve cases and stop crime. He does take time to chill out and stuff but he never stops."

"Well I'll tell you one thing, he didn't get that from either of us," Mary said, looking at the things in her son's room. She noticed the giant portrait hanging on the wall of her and John.

"Where did this come from?" she pointed to the portrait.

"Bruce Wayne had it made for him, after you guys died, it was in Wayne Manor until Dick moved here," Beast Boy said.

"He tell you that?" she asked. Beast Boy nodded.

"That was thoughtful of him, it's like, with that picture it's like we were with him." Mary moved over to the closet.

"I have a feeling he doesn't have any civvies in here," she opened the closet. "Interesting, he has more than one uniform."

"Yeah, he does," Beast Boy noticed her looking for something. "What are you looking for?"

"Oh, I was just looking for the uniform I made for him, all these others are based off it. I wonder where it is."

"You…made that for him?" Beast Boy asked, stunned. He'd never said anything about his uniform being something his mother made for him.

"Yes, it was the last thing I gave him before I died," Mary said quietly. Beast Boy stared at her intently listening, it was very fascinating, her telling him all this. Robin never went into detail about his past.

"Oh, I guess that's why he wears it constantly. He'd always think of you that way," Beast Boy said, "So where'd the name "Robin" come from anyway?"

"I've called him "little Robin" since he was a baby. He was born on the first day of spring, and a robin landed on the windowsill outside the hospital. It's a term of endearment. I guess it stuck."

"I didn't know he liked it so much," Beast Boy laughed.

"Actually, he didn't like it so much, he said that kids his age would get beat up for nicknames like that," Mary told him. "Guess when he needed a code name to work with Batman, he decided it would work and, in a way, he'd always think of me."

"I didn't know it was that personal for him," Beast Boy said. "He must've really missed you guys."

"Yeah, he did. Come on, I'm going to see what else is in this Tower of yours." Making her way out to the hall, she asked Beast Boy, "Where's the evidence room?"

Down the hall first door on the left," Beast Boy pointed at it. Mary walked down the hall and into the room. She saw all the newspaper articles and pictures of the various supervillains the Titans faced on a regular basis.

Mary glanced at the newspaper clippings on the wall and smiled. Her son had always loved reading the newspaper, not because he was interested in politics or the weather but he loved reading about Batman and Superman's exploits. Ironic that he would be the one that other little boys would read about and be in awe of.

Scanning the wall, she read the headlines of various stories concerning her son and the Titans.

_Hmmm…"Who is Slade?" Interesting, no one seems to know much about him, not even Dick," _Mary shifted her gaze and saw a large poster of The Flying Graysons on the wall. "I guess he thought it was right to keep it up on that wall, but with it being right next to an article about Slade doesn't make me feel flattered."

Getting up, Mary Grayson exited the Evidence Room and headed out toward the living room where the other Titans were waiting for her. So far, things seemed fine, but she knew how fast situations could change. Her new life was good and it was just beginning, but she just had to wonder how long her peaceful sanctuary inside the Tower would last, and how long it would be before the League of Assassins would invade the Titans' home, and attempt to take her life…

* * *

Dick Grayson, along with his father John, made their way through Jump City. His father was on a nondescript bike his son had loaned him. They drove through the back alleys and tried to avoid open places if at all possible. His father was leading him to where they had hidden one hundred pounds of Kryptonite.

His parents had inadvertently stumbled on a conspiracy to assassinate Earth's greatest hero, Superman. Something this big couldn't remain hidden forever.

Discovering this plot was dangerous enough, but with the entire League of Assassins after his parents had put them in a dangerous position. The League was definitely behind the plot to kill Superman but putting his parents in the middle of it made them all the more determined to wipe them off the face of the earth so that they wouldn't expose their activities.

"Are we there yet? How much farther?" Robin asked. He didn't like being out in the open with his birth father, not that it was that he didn't like being with him, he was just worried that one of the Demon's Teeth would jump out and start trying to take them both out by cutting off their heads.

"Don't worry, just a few more blocks," John said as quietly as he could. Keeping his voice down was hard because of the motorcycles' engines.

They drove down a few more blocks until John turned into Pier 41. Robin recognized this place was where Slade had once housed his decoy Chronoton Detonator.

John got off his bike and went over to a nearby warehouse and picked the lock on the door.

"Get inside, it's best if no one sees us," John said. Robin complied and quickly moved inside the warehouse.

Robin stared around at the inside of the warehouse in amazement. The interior was filled with state-of-the art computer equipment and surveillance technology. He gazed up at the monitored. They had his entire city under surveillance.

"Not that I'm impressed with this place, but haven't you ever thought that maybe someone could discover this place and use all this to commit crimes?" he asked his father.

"Don't worry son, I have safeguards on this place, and it's owned by a dummy corporation that's a front for Ra's Al Ghul. If they ever find us here, they'll never get to us."

"How do you know that?" Robin asked.

"Because well, I—" he stopped in midsentence. "Did you notice something?"

"What?"

"It's too quiet," John told him.

"Of course it's quiet, there's no one here but us," Robin observed. He was right. Something _was_ out of place, but he couldn't put his finger on it.

"No, I mean as in nobody's working in the other warehouses. When your mother and I lived here, we constantly heard workers hauling shipments in and out of all the other warehouses surrounding us. Today it's quiet, as if everyone decided to take the day off."

"You're right, it's as if, someone scared them off," the realization hit Robin. They both were in danger. He heard a clicking noise. He whirled around to come face-to-face with one of Slade's robotic Minions.

"Looks like Slade found us," Robin said.

"We can take on this thing, it's just one," John observed. "Not a problem."

"You're wrong Dad, there never is_ just one_," Robin told him. Just then about two dozen Sladebots, also known as Minions, dropped from the rafters above them. They were completely surrounded. The Minions had their guns pointed at them, ready to shoot the life out of them.

"Looks like we're going to use whatever safeguards you have on this place," Robin said, brandishing his Bo Staff. Slade wanted father and son to fight their way out. Robin wouldn't disappoint him.


	12. Chapter XII: Contact

**Chapter Twelve: Contact**

**_Author's notes: _**_Sorry this took so long to finish. I know you guys have been waiting for this update for ages. I got stuck and didn't know where to go, but it's up now. While you're waiting for the next update after this chapter feel free to go read my alternate universe version of this story. It's called **"The Assassins"**, it's a whole lot darker and is **rated M** for **adult themes, torture and violence**. It's the complete opposite of this story and it shows what might have happened if Ra's had successfully brainwashed the Graysons. Enjoy the new chapter!_

John Grayson used his expert acrobatics to avoid laser fire as Slade's Minions opened fire. He had trained against multiple opponents before but never two dozen killing machine's bent on blasting him to oblivion. Executing a round house kick, he sent the killer robot flying across the room and into the wall. He watched as its head split open with a sparking, fizzing noise. He never thought he could be creeped out so much by artificial life before.

Robin avoided a blow and smashed is open palm into the Minion's "face", it stepped back and retaliated by pulling its weapon and firing at series of shots at the Boy Wonder. Robin evaded the shots using his innate acrobatic skills, he somersaulted over the minion and launched straight into a flying kick.

A quick blow to its head and the killing machine was deactivated. John quickly turned his attention to the other robots. His fist smashed through the machine's ha as he sent it flying across the room. He launched straight into a spin kick and sent another one flying.

Robin did his best not to stare. His father had been strong, but not that strong. It must have been either the Lazarus Pit or adrenaline, he didn't know which. Five down, nineteen to go.

Four Minions formed a straight line and opened fire with their guns. Both fighters' dove for cover behind boxes stored inside the warehouse as they tried to put space between themselves and their enemies. Robin pulled out a Bird-A-Rang and hurled it at the nearest one, slicing its mask off, revealing its inner control panel. He then removed an escrima stick from his utility belt and threw it like a spear into the control panel; it dropped to the floor as the other robots stepped over it and continued their relentless assault.

"We've got to get out of here!" Robin called at his father John.

"Not without that Kryptonite!" he replied.

"It looks like they beat you to it!" Robin shouted.

_Ah great, _he thought. _So much for getting in and out of here quietly. _

Removing a shuriken from his belt he threw it straight at the Minion closest to him, distracting it enough that it let go of the box. While one of them turned his attention to John, the other continued to drag the hundred pound box out of the building. Robin knew there was no way his father had enough time to deal with both of the robots.

Launching himself into a flying kick, robin knocked back the robot that had been attempting to drag the Kryptonite outside. He finished it off by burying his Bird-A-Rang into the control panel located inside its head. He quickly tossed explosive back at a group of minions making their way towards him. The explosion sent them flying back into the wall where they broke apart on impact, either the machines were faulty or his explosives were stronger than he thought. He tended to think the former, considering the fact that the Minions usually put up more of a fight than this.

Maybe this was one of Slade's sick and twisted tests, like when he had tried to rape his mother in order to test his father's skills in combat. Slade probably sent the Minions to see how well father and son worked together. Then again, he _did_ give Slade too much credit sometimes, even when the man _wasn't_ involved in certain criminal enterprises; he sometimes suspected that Slade might have a hand in a lot of the darker activities going on around Jump City.

The problem was Slade wasn't the master puppeteer pulling the strings this time. He was working for Ra's Al Ghul, and finding that man required a lot of time and effort. Unfortunately, with all his people wanting his family dead Robin didn't see how he could get anywhere _near_ Ra's Al Ghul to stop him from killing his parents.

John had just used his Bo Staff to knock two more Minions down on the ground where he proceeded to pound their control panels to scrap with the end of his weapon.

Robin suddenly spotted a forklift in the corner of the room.

"Dad!" he shouted. "Is that how you got the Kryptonite in here?"

"Yeah," John replied.

"Hand me the key!" John tossed it to him without hesitation. Robin sprinted over to the forklift and started it up. He floored it as fast as the hulking machine would go and proceeded to run over the rest of Slade's Minions. Just when he thought it was over, two dozen more appeared. They didn't have time to keep fighting them all; they had to get the Kryptonite back to the Tower.

"Robin, get that Kryptonite out of here! I'll be right behind you!" John ordered. Normally it would seem strange to see Robin take orders from someone else, having been independent of Batman, he had established himself as the leader of the Teen Titans, and normally, he wasn't one to follow orders, but this man was his father and this was too important to ignore. Robin drove out of the warehouse.

John bolted out of the building at a run, all the while removing a small remote from his pants pocket. He looked down at the controls and pushed a button.

_Good riddance. This should keep them from following us. Permanently._

Robin turned his head at the exact moment that his father detonated the building. His eyes were wide, that was something he hadn't expected_. _

"Well, now what should we do?" John asked. "I can't expect you to drive a forklift home now can I?"

"Don't worry, I have a quicker way," Robin replied, pulling out his communicator. "Raven, we got the Kryptonite. We need you to teleport it back to the Tower."

"Just give me a second," she replied. Instantly she appeared, gathering the two men, the motorcycles and the Kryptonite into her black aura. They reappeared in the common room of the Tower and John looked around, bewildered. Raven then used her powers to send the motorcycles to the garage.

"I don't think I'm ever going to get used to any of this," he said to himself.

"Uh, Dad, why did you blow up the building?" Robin asked, just then the other Titans and Mary walked into the living room. Raven raised an eyebrow, she'd seen the building burning and guessed it had blown up somehow, but she hadn't expected Robin's father to do that. Robin wasn't really explosion prone and she had to wonder what possible motive he had for destroying a warehouse.

"John, did I just hear Dick say that you _blew up the warehouse?!_" Mary asked. "We're trying to stay below the radar, not let the whole world know we're alive and well here."

"Yeah, well, we had two dozen robot assassins after us. Besides, those warehouses belong to Ra's Al Ghul and Lex Luthor, so no real loss there."

"Er, say what?!" Cyborg asked. Every superhero knew about Lex Luthor and his vendetta against Superman, and the superhero community in general. He was a villain who wanted nothing less that the death of Superman at his own hands. And if he could take out other heroes while doing it, that made him even happier.

"Dad, are you sure?" Robin asked, in all his time living in Jump City, he hadn't given Lex Luthor a second thought. After all, the Justice League could deal with Luthor; he had enough problems with supervillains that lived in the city, besides, what would a big shot villain like Luthor want with this place. It wasn't Metropolis, there wasn't any technological wonders being constructions, its science labs weren't churning out cures for cancer, so what would someone like Luthor want with this city?

"I'm sure; I've had to hack LexCorp bank accounts so I could get money to live on."

"You _hacked_ LexCorp bank accounts?!" Cyborg asked in disbelief. "I don't even_ I _could do that. But then again, I've never tried it."

"When the League of Assassins trains you in the deadly art of how to kill people without being noticed you have to know how to hack into anything and everything, that includes computers."

"I see; what else did you find out?" Robin asked. "You do know what all that Kryptonite is for don't you?"

"Killing Superman, of course," Mary answered for him. "It's like all those stories I used to tell you, but I don't really think Lex Luthor isn't the one behind this."

"Well, why not? It does seem plausible, doesn't it?" John asked. He'd heard all those stories too, but no one had ever been able to actually link Lex Luthor to the crimes he committed. Being a genius, he could weasel his way out of a lot of situations that had strong ties to him.

"Yeah, but if Lex Luthor's going to kill Superman, he wouldn't settle for something as mundane as shooting him with a Kryptonite bullet," Mary replied.

She continued. "The night we died, we knew that there was no way anyone wad going to forget what had happened to us. If you're gonna go, go out in a blaze of unforgettable glory and if you're someone like Lex Luthor, you want your opponent's demise to be something very memorable, that's what I say."

Robin nodded. "Lex Luthor would love for nothing more than killing Superman himself, but as mom just said, he wants it to be _big_, to prove that the world doesn't need Superman. He wants to show the world that people like him need to be in charge. Besides, Lex isn't the only one who wants Superman dead."

John was thoughtful, "The League of Assassins, it could be them, but during all my hacking of all their dummy corporations, I didn't see anything that mentioned hundred pound containers or something as large as this box."

"It was probably shipped in with other things to disguise its true purpose," Robin said. "With the entire League of Assassins after you it's a possibility that they might have hired someone to do this job for them."

"But who, there's Deadshot, he lives up to his pseudonym, but shooting Superman, I don't know about that," Mary said. "Met him once. He gave me the creeps."

"Mary, _all _those guys gave you the creeps," John commented. Back then he hadn't thought much of his wife's discomfort about many of the men he now knew were merciless assassins. He'd thought that she was uncomfortable around all of them because she didn't trust strangers as easily as he did. He ‑­

always tended to see the good side of everything. Unfortunately, it was his naiveté that had put her in danger.

"I still wonder how I could have let them suck me into all this," John said, running his fingers through his black hair. "I should have suspected something. Should have noticed something wasn't right when they were teaching us all those techniques on how to kill your target without letting them make the slightest noise, not to mention all that weapons training."

"Dude, you can really _do_ that?" Beast Boy asked incredulously.

"Yes," John replied. Beast Boy did a double take as John jumped up from the couch and somersaulted over him. The man landed without any noise and before the shape shifter knew it, he found himself in a choke hold that no amount of shape shifting could possibly get him out of.

"_Dude!_" Beast Boy exclaimed in awe and horror. How could a human being be so well trained they could kill you before you even had the chance to fight back? It was frightening, only made worse by the fact that these people thought they were ridding the world of "evil". He'd heard rumors about the League of Assassins, but he'd always been chasing the Brotherhood of Evil with the Doom Patrol, so he didn't really pay attention to any of those stories.

John released Beast Boy from his chokehold and somersaulted back over to his seat and sat down. Beast Boy gave him a surprised look but noticed Robin was just sitting around acting like nothing had really happened.

"Dude, you aren't creeped out that this Ra's Al Ghul dude resurrected your parents just so they could kill you?" he asked Robin. Robin looked at him, thought for a moment and gave his answer.

"Of course I'm disturbed by all this Beast Boy. Ra's Al Ghul tried to take my parents and turn them into a weapon to use against me. This is affecting me a lot. And if he had succeeded in brainwashing them…I don't know what I would have done."

He looked at them. "If they had been able to brainwash you both….would you have been willing to kill me?"

Both John and Mary looked at him, stricken.

"Do you…really want us to answer that question son?" John asked, his voice had a serious edge to it.

"Yes," he replied.

"Honestly…if they had gotten to me…I very well think I could have killed you," Mary said, breathing shakily. "But, somehow, I think I'd know who you really were, and if I found out the truth, I'd never be able to live with myself for it."

"I agree with your mother," John added. "Even if we didn't know the truth about who you really were behind that mask, I think we'd always feel that connection we had as a family back when we were alive."

"If I hadn't figured out all this before I found you both, I don't know if I would have been able to fight you," Robin looked at them. "I don't think I could bring myself to do that."

"But you would have to, even if you didn't want to. Now that we've discussed the past, I think it's time we discussed the present," Mary said calmly. "We still have to deal with the League of Assassins to deal with. They're not exactly happy with us being that, we didn't kill you like they'd intended."

"How many have they sent after you?" Robin asked.

"Let's see, there's Merlyn, Shiva, Slade—" John began.

"I know," Robin interrupted. "He needs money to fund his criminal operations, that's why Slade's involved."

He had an important question to ask. "Mom, Dad, did you ever find out who the intended recipient of that Kryptonite is?"

"No," John replied. "We couldn't. Whoever it is remained anonymous in all the transactions."

"It's Slade. He's the outside help the League hired to kill Superman," Robin finished. His parents gave him uncertain looks.

"Why Slade?" John asked. "Why not have his own assassins do it?"

"The obvious answer, they're all trying to kill you. They don't have the time to assassinate Superman if they're trying to find you two. They can't be everywhere at once."

They nodded. "So now what do we do?" John asked.

"I'm going to hand this Kryptonite over to the Justice League," Robin said. "I don't trust the security system in the Tower, even if it's the best system that Cyborg constructed, this stuff is far too valuable to stay here."

"Then what?" his mother asked.

"I have a feeling the League of Assassins won't waste time in coming to this city to kill you both so I think that we'll patrol the city and search for them. Meanwhile, you both will stay here where you're safe."

"So you want us to just sit around here and wait while you go out to stop the guys who are trying to kill us?" Mary asked.

"Yes," Robin replied in a serious voice. "I don't want anything to happen to either of you."

"That's all right son, that just means more alone time for me and your mother," John laughed, wrapping his arm around her waist.

"Pervert," she glared at him. "Is that all you can think about? Seriously, you worry me."

"Come one, if you weren't in such a bad mood you would be flattered that I want you to—"

"That's it, I'm out of here. Your love lives aren't my business. Coming guys?"

The Titans got up and followed him out of the Tower. John watched them go; he waited until they were out of earshot.

"I can't believe you just said that in front of all of them. Don't you have any sense at all—?"

She stopped. He was kissing her again. There embrace was romantic and sweet. She wasn't really sure if this was the right thing to do, not in a moral sense of course, but the timing of this, it was…too complicated.

"Why are you always trying to seduce me?" she asked.

"I can't help it. You're so beautiful…" he murmured in her ear.

"What will it take to make you stop all this?"

"Humor me, just this once, and I'll stop trying to…seduce you," he took her hand and pulled her to her feet.

He took her to their room; they didn't say much, they never needed to. During the time they spent together they didn't think about anything else. They loved each other, and the physical expression of that only made them grow closer to each other, in every sense of the expression.

"You satisfied?" Mary asked, looking over at him.

"Quite," he smiled. "You know I love you, don't you?"

"Yes," she stared up at the ceiling. "I just don't know if this was appropriate."

"Come on! We're married, and you shouldn't worry. There's nothing wrong with physical intimacy."

"The timing isn't right for this—"

"You don't want to get pregnant, because you wouldn't want anything to happen to the baby."

Yes," she answered. Mary hadn't ever gotten pregnant after she gave birth to Dick. It had always bothered her. John knew that too, but tried to be as encouraging as possible.

"Pregnancy is the least of your worries," he put a hand on her shoulder. "So please, stop worrying about it, all right?"

"Fine, I won't. Will you stop bothering me about this now? We got what we wanted."

"So you _did _want me that way," he laughed.

"You're very persuasive," she kissed him on the mouth.

"Let's get dressed, we need to train," he said.

"You're serious?"

"We can't let our guard down now can we?" John asked, getting up.

Fully dressed they headed to the training room.

It was going to be a long afternoon.

* * *

Slade heard the doors to his lair open as he saw Wintergreen walk in, carrying a pot and a cup of tea.

"Master Slade, the men Ra's Al Ghul sent to help you have arrived," the man served Slade his tea.

"Good, send them in." The group of the League's most deadly Assassins walked into the room.

"So nice to see you all. I've heard of each of your reputations. I suppose you all are here to help me deal with my Grayson "problem"."

"Yes, the Flying Graysons," Lady Shiva said. "They _are_ a problem. Ra's Al Ghul wants them eliminated. Separately, we failed but this arrangement should be beneficial to all of us."

"Yes," Shrike said. "I was hoping to meet up with that _Robin_ for quite some time. I will kill him and avenge my master, the first Shrike."

"So you really think you can kill Robin?" Slade asked.

"Yes," Shrike hissed.

To the man's shock, Slade began to laugh.

"You think you can kill him?" Slade asked. "You couldn't kill him if you had all the weaponry in the world, and even if your O-Sensei trained you for a hundred years you wouldn't be able to beat him."

"How dare you insult me you pathetic, one-eyed—!" Shrike unleashed his bladed tonfas and rushed at Slade in a fury.

Quick as lightening, Slade blocked the first thrust of the man's tonfa as he grasped the assassin's arm and twisted it around his back. One quick pull and Shrike felt his shoulder being dislocated.

"AAAAAHHHH!" he screamed in pain. He dropped to the ground, clutching at his dislocated shoulder.

"You're an idiot, Boone. Yes, I do know your name and have heard about your stupid little vendetta against Robin. But if I could dislocate your shoulder without even trying, imagine what Robin could do to you," he smirked.

Boone glared up at him. Slade ignored him.

"Now I've heard there's one more player who'll make sure everything falls into place."

"That would be me, I assume," a voice said.

"Count Vertigo, glad you could make it," Slade greeted him coldly.

"So when do we kill the Graysons?" Shiva asked.

"Tomorrow, we are going to attack Titans Tower, and while the Titans will be distracted by my appearance, you will all move in to kill John and Mary Grayson."

"All of us to take out two people? Does seem a bit much, don't you think?"

"No Vertigo, it's not "a bit much". You have no idea what you're dealing with so just do your job and the Graysons will be dead."

"I still have the schematics of Titans Tower, never thought I'd need them again, but it will come in handy."

"How would you get such a thing?" Shiva asked.

"An apprentice of mine, who later betrayed me, was able to get the schematics of Titans Tower for me."

Everything was falling into place. The Graysons were going to die, the Titans would be destroyed, and there would be no one left to stand in the way of his takeover of Jump City.


	13. Chapter XIII: Go

**Chapter Thirteen: Go**

_**Author's Note:**__ Sorry for being away from this for so long, haven't gotten inspiration until now. I have gone back and spell-checked the ENTIRE story, and have added some new details as I have discovered that the Flying Graysons HAVE BEEN RESURRECTED IN THE DC Universe, I'm not kidding, they're now Black Lantern zombies, controlled by EVIL…I'm sold on the Blackest Night story, just for zombie Flying Graysons!_

Bruce Wayne stared at the surveillance images with interest. These images captured on Orpheus Industries cameras were some of the most surreal video he'd ever seen. He recognized their faces and their acrobatics instantly. He'd seen many of the same maneuvers executed by his protégé and former partner, Robin. It was strange, seeing them alive and well again. Despite their attempt to hide their identities, nothing could escape the World's Greatest Detective, not even the resurrected Fearless Flying Graysons.

From what he had gathered, he knew they had been travelling the world, eluding the League of Assassins, training with the True Master and laying low in Jump City waiting for Robin to return. He also knew that they had reunited with their son and were living in Titans Tower. It seemed strange that the boy he'd seen as a son had seen a miracle that he could only dream of.

Bruce was sure that he would go see them and he decided he'd waited long enough. He stood up from his chair in the Batcave and put on his cowl. It was time he paid the Flying Graysons a visit.

It only took a few hours to fly from Gotham City to Jump City, especially in his aircraft. He landed on Titans Tower and exited his plane. He made his way inside, using his DNA to get inside, as the only ones allowed inside the Tower were fellow Titans or members of the Justice League. After the incident with Terra, Cyborg had installed a security system that would only let certain people in based on their DNA signature from their thumbprints.

He entered, quiet as death itself. He made his way down the hall and saw the two Graysons standing in the kitchen. They were looking at each other, talking.

"Who landed on the roof?" Mary asked.

"I think it was Batman," John replied. "I remember that plane of his from the papers."

"Where'd he go though?"

"I'm right here," he said flatly. They nearly jumped out of their skin at the sight of him.

"Why are you here?" John asked, he wasn't one to waste words.

"I'm here to see the two of you," Batman replied. "It's not like I don't know what's been going on when it comes to you two. I know that the League of Shadows desecrated your graves and stole you and your wife's bodies."

"So why didn't you get involved?" Mary asked.

"Dick is your son, you're his mother, and John is his father, so I decided to let him handle it. It seems he was able to find you two. You both are lucky, not many people have escaped the League of Assassins and lived to tell about it."

"Gee, thanks," John said, staring at him.

"We never got to thank you for what you did all those years ago," Mary said quietly. Bruce gave her a slight smile.

"I only did what I had to do," he said.

"Bruce, I want to thank you for what you've done for Dick, it means a lot to me that you took him in after we died." Mary tried to read him, but he was stoic as ever.

"So he told you who I was, I thought he would, you do have the right to know," Batman told her. "I also see you haven't come out of this unscathed." He noted her hand, which had three metal prosthetic fingers on them, like Cyborg's.

She stared down at what was left of her fingers. "Cyborg made me some prosthetics."

"Batman, do you think we'll get out of this alive?" John asked.

"I'm not sure, but with extra training, you both should be able to beat them. I know that Chui-Hui trained you both, had it not been for her, you two would have been killed."

"How do you know her?" Mary looked at him, it seemed like there wasn't anything he _didn't_ know, when it came to what they'd been doing ever since they'd come back to life. Then again, he was the World's Greatest Detective, so she figured he'd know about them whether Dick told him or not.

"She trained me just like she trained Dick," he replied. "She's one of the best martial artists there is, and very few people have the honor of training with her. I sought her out a long time ago, long before I was ever Batman."

"I'm going to call Dick and tell him that I've come for the Kryptonite. But after I turn it over to the Justice League I intend to stay for awhile."

"Why's that?" John asked.

"This isn't directly about the two of you, or even Dick. This is about me. Ra's Al Ghul wants to kill Dick as a way to get to me. Using you two was just another way to make it worse, after that he would have killed you and Mary and that would have been the end of it."

"I knew it!" John exclaimed.

Mary groaned, "It was all an elaborate setup. I couldn't find anything on Dick and it had me worried. How could they have tricked us like that?"

"Ra's Al Ghul is a master of deception; don't blame yourself, in your situation you would be inclined to believe what he told you."

Batman turned his attention to his communicator inside his Cowl. He had some unfinished business.

* * *

"Dude, do you know how lucky you are?" Beast Boy asked Robin through his communicator.

"You're referring to the fact that my parents have been resurrected, even though, they were supposed to kill me," Robin said.

"I mean, besides that part, I'd give anything to have my parents back, and you get yours, perfectly normal. I mean, they could've come back as evil, heart eating zombies from Hell—"

"What's with you and your zombie theories? I mean, I heard that you thought _I _turned into a zombie when Slade made me his apprentice," Robin said.

"Come on, man, it's possible isn't it? If it happened, it'd be like _Dawn of the Dead_, and we'd need flamethrowers and stuff—"

"This is relevant, how?" Cyborg asked. "Honestly, B.B., you've been watching too many horror movies lately."

"Oh, c'mon, you know that _Zombieland_ was a great movie, best horror/comedy ever, even _Raven _liked it and she hates comedy."

"Cut the chatter, Beast Boy, we have to find all those assassins," Robin said, suddenly, his communicator started beeping.

"Hello?" he asked. He saw the face on the small screen. "Batman, what do you want?"

"Let's just say I stopped by for a visit," he said.

"I take it it's not a social call. You came to see my parents, didn't you? And also, the hundred pounds of Kryptonite."

"Yes, and I plan on leaving as soon as I finish a few things," Batman's voice was serious as ever.

"Because of Ra's Al Ghul and the League of Assassins, only one condition," Robin warned.

"What would that be?" his mentor asked.

"Don't treat me like a kid, or your sidekick. We're handling them my way."

"Understood, you're the leader, I'm just here to do what I need to do. I'm taking this straight to Ra's."

"Fine, you handle him, I get the rest, and then I get my shot at him," Robin said.

"Done, but before I do that, there's something I need to do," Batman said.

"Any training for my parents is fine by me," Robin said. It would be good to know that his parents were being trained by Bruce; he was one of the best martial artists in the world. His parents would learn all the skills needed to survive the League of Assassins, killers who were preparing to strike at any time. The more prepared they were, the better their chances of survival would be.

"I'm out looking for them right now, I'll let you know if anything turns up," Robin ended the communication, shutting off his communicator.

"Come on, Titans, we've got work to do." Robin was bound and determined to find all of the assassins who were in his city.

Robin ordered the Titans to spread out, cover as much ground as they could. He headed toward the abandoned warehouse. It was time he saw what was actually in these buildings; he always suspected that they were being used for illegal purposes.

It was going to be a long day.

* * *

"Slade, we have a problem." Merlyn said, "It seems that Batman has arrived in Jump City, and we don't know when he'll leave."

"That doesn't matter; his business is mainly with your master, Ra's. But that's not our main priority right now. I have some "packages" I need you all to get for me."

"Just who are these packages?" Shiva asked.

"Garrison Haley, Danny Poteet, Irving and Felina Carberry, Sam Windrow, and Theodore Pulaski. They are the perfect bargaining chips we need to get the Flying Graysons."

"But who are all these people?" Shrike asked. "I hate this, give me something to kill and I'll kill it."

"These people are all dear friends of the Graysons from before they died. Having them as hostages will be the only way for the Graysons to surrender, after all, they couldn't live with the thought of their friends being murdered because they wouldn't return to Ra's Al Ghul. And it's quite convenient, they happen to be here in Jump City since the Haly Bros. circus is in town."

"This might be fun," Merlyn smirked, "I haven't been to the circus in a long time." The others laughed. It was time to go. They wouldn't grab their targets yet, they'd just scout the place.

Meanwhile, Danny Poteet was busy preparing the big top for another performance. It had been an eventful day, coming to another city, preparing to perform for folks of all ages. It was a fulfilling life, and he was happy.

But sometimes, he found himself thinking about the Fearless Flying Graysons, sometimes he thought he could see them standing behind him. He would turn around and they would be gone, just like always.

He knew that Dick had been adopted by Bruce Wayne. He hoped that Dick was happy in that life. He knew that Bruce was a good man who truly cared about him. Still, it wasn't fair that John and Mary had died so young; they both had had so much potential. He still wondered why they had been murdered over something as trivial as money.

He sighed, it'd been a long day; he was ready to go back to his trailer to go to bed. Jump City was a bustling city, he was reminded of Gotham City, they'd been back there many times after the Graysons' death, the place sold out every time, their deaths had made the circus a legend.

There were all sorts of people who would ask him questions, from reporters to the curious, to ghost hunters who would persuade him to let them stay on the nights of the Graysons' wedding anniversary to June 27th, the day they died, people hoping for a sighting of them.

Not many people had seen the Graysons' ghosts, himself and many of the circus staff who had been their closest friends, some of the new workers swore they had seen them swinging on trapeze bars that didn't move, and then there was the one night where Dick Grayson had returned with four of his friends to stay the night to hopefully see John and Mary.

What they had seen that night had been taped, but they had never been shown to anyone else, he heard that they had talked to him and that it was an unforgettable experience. He'd heard that they had not called Dick by name but he had talked to them. Then they had gone home and everything returned to normal, but he noticed that the Grayson haunting had stopped six months ago.

He glanced behind him once more, he went inside, and he supposed it was for the best; after all, the Graysons were in a far better place than this one.

* * *

Batman turned back to the Graysons and said, "It's time we get started."

"You implied you wanted to train us," Mary said.

"Yes," Batman said, let's go to the training room." He made his way straight to the room.

"How do you know where the training room is?" John asked.

"You're son gave me the plans to Titans Tower, should I ever need to come here in case of an emergency," Batman replied.

They followed him into the training room. They had been in this room many times, sparring with each other because Dick was gone, searching for the League of Assassins.

"Show me what you're made of," Batman said, assuming a fighting stance. John went first; he took out a bo staff from his utility belt and attacked. Batman blocked the blow easily and retaliated with a kick. John managed to duck and struck back with a flurry of kicks and punches.

Mary joined him, somersaulting above him, she executed a kick that he avoided and he counterattacked her easily. They fought for hours until their muscles gave way from exhaustion.

"You both have been well-trained, I can tell," Batman congratulated them. "But it's not nearly enough to best the League of Assassins. I'm going to train you, and when I say that I mean I'm going to put you both through Hell, and when we're finished, you'll be as good as your son."

"You really mean that, Batman?" Mary asked.

"Yes, now get up, you're training has just started. What I'm going to put you both through will make marine boot camp seem like a cakewalk."

* * *

_Three days later…_

"Are you Danny Poteet?" a voice asked.

"So what if I am?" he asked.

"I've come for you," Shrike said. He reached out and grabbed him by the neck, wanting to snap his neck in half, but knowing that he was more valuable alive than dead, he restrained himself.

"Leave him alone, Shrike," a voice said.

Danny Poteet stared up in shock. Was he seeing things or was that who he thought it was?

"John Grayson, you honestly think you can stop me?" Shrike smirked.

"Oh no, not by myself, I'm just the bait—"

"—And you fell for it," Robin finished.

Danny Poteet gasped, he knew that voice and face, even though it was hidden by a mask.

"It's over Shrike, it's the end of your master's plan, and you won't get away."

"Johnny, is that you, old boy?" Danny asked, barely able to believe his eyes.

"Yes, it's me, we're getting you out of here, Poteet, don't worry," John reassured him.

"Says you and what army?" Shrike taunted.

"How's this for an army?" Robin retorted. The bright lights of Haly Circus suddenly lit up, revealing not just the five Titans, but every single Titan who had participated in their last battle against the Brotherhood of Evil. Once John and Mary had discovered that the League of Assassins was targeting the circus staff of Haly's Circus, Dick had taken it upon himself to contact all his friends, they would have to have all the help they could get on this one.

"Titans, GO!" he ordered. This was the moment that would set everything in motion.


End file.
